Bleach: The Flame They Share
by MrLotus
Summary: Young Ryu Aizawa becomes captain of squad five, but momo isn't happy, can Ryu be a successful captain and earn momo's trust? OC X Momo, not sure about other pairings yet.
1. Prologue: The Captain of Squad Five

**Prologue: The Captain of Squad 5**

"Did you hear? They say that substitute Shinigami Ichigo Kurosaki defeated Aizen, can you believe that?" A Shinigami asked another as throughout the streets of the Seireitei many were celebrating the end of the Winter War.

"I know, who would have thought that the ryoka from last year would be able to do something that even Captain Yamamoto couldn't do?" Another Shinigami asked as yet another Shinigami came running up.

"Hey did you hear? Captain Yamamoto has found a captain for Squad Three!" The Shinigami exclaimed.

"Who is it?" The first Shinigami asked.

"You mean it's not Kira?" The second Shinigami asked.

"Well actually it is." The third Shinigami added as the three burst out into a fit of laughter.

"Well I hope they find replacements for the other squads soon enough too. Come to think of it, why not ask Hisagi to apply for captaincy?" The first Shinigami asked.

"Great idea, but who should we ask to take Aizen's place?" The second Shinigami asked.

"Well Hinamori is the lieutenant." The first Shinigami retorted.

"Are you joking? Everyone thinks that girl's a nut job, if she became captain for Squad Five, we would only have another Aizen on our hands!" The third Shinigami exclaimed prompting the other's to burst into laughter yet again.

From a distance Momo Hinamori had been observing the Shinigami as they discussed the matter, and deep inside she could feel her heart breaking. "Why can't anyone see that Aizen was only controlled by Gin?" She wondered as a few tears trickled from her eyes.

"You shouldn't listen to them Momo." Rangiku stated from behind the upset Shinigami. "Besides they can talk all they want, I know you're not crazy, and like a few unseated officers have any say in who becomes captain of any squad. Don't let them get to you. Now let's go, the old man wanted to see all captains and lieutenants for a special announcement, if we don't hurry we'll get in trouble." She stated before running off, but as she passed the three unseated Shinigami she unleashed a wave of reiatsu that caused the three to collapse to the ground.

The sight of the three Shinigami from before getting forced to the ground brought a smile to Momo's face. "Right I don't need to listen to them! Rangiku's right, and maybe I could be captain of my squad!" Momo thought as she ran past the downed Shinigami as she shot them a glare.

At the meeting Yamamoto wasted no time in getting to business. "I have called you all here to address the status of Squad Nine, as of tomorrow the captain will be Renji Abarai while Shuhei Hisagi will remain as lieutenant." Yamamoto called forth to the captains and lieutenants.

"Excuse me Captain Yamamoto sir?" Momo spoke up.

"What is it?" Yamamoto asked.

"Well I was wondering… If you haven't found a captain for my squad yet, I'd like to request that I be made captain." Momo replied timidly.

"No, I can not approve such a request. Momo Hinamori you are not fit to command a squad at this time, so you will continue to carry out your duties as I assign them to you. That is all you are dismissed." Yamamoto stated.

"No… It can't be." Momo thought in horror. "This isn't fair!" Momo shouted at Yamamoto. "You allowed for Kira to succeed Gin, so why can't I be captain for my squad?" She shouted.

"Silence!" Yamamoto shouted back. "It is because you act on impulse fueled by your emotions that you are unfit to be a captain. A captain must be of sound mind lest they bring their squad into ruin. You are still enthralled in the belief that Gin Ichimaru was controlling Aizen. Your personal feelings have clouded your judgment and as such you are unworthy of being a captain. Now you are dismissed." He finished as Momo broke down into sobs.

It had been four years since the Winter War against the traitorous captains had been won. Since then, the Soul Society had fended off an invasion of Quincies, though there were many changes. The most notable change was that central forty-six was disbanded leaving all major decisions concerning Soul Society to Captain Yamamoto. Another notable change was that in the war against the Quincies, a few Shinigami began to learn some of the abilities that the Quincies utilized, such as the ability to use reishi to control otherwise paralyzed appendages. Yet another notable change was a stage of release beyond bankai, sanban kaihou involved the materialization of the zanpakuto spirit to fight alongside the Shinigami it was partnered with, the first Shinigami to achieve this was Byakuya Kuchiki, he discovered the third release the day his sister achieved her bankai. While many things in Soul Society had changed, there was still no captain for Squad Five, but that too was about to change.

It was late in the year as once again Momo went to see Yamamoto to try and convince him that she was fit to be captain. "As you can see I have achieved bankai, I am also calmer than I was back then, and I no longer harbor any delusions as to the events surrounding the Winter War… Have I met the necessary qualifications yet?" Momo asked as Yamamoto read a file on her.

"While I agree you have made considerable growth I'm afraid I can not give you a position that has already been filled." Yamamoto replied and Momo's eyes widened.

"What did you say?" Momo asked weakly.

"The former third seat of Squad Six has requested a transfer to Squad Five to become a captain. He had the recommendation of numerous captains, and his psychiatric evaluation as well as his physical abilities make him a suitable candidate for captaincy of Squad Five. The meeting this afternoon was to induct him into his position as your new captain. If you are unsatisfied you can always challenge him for his position, you are fit to lead after all." Yamamoto explained.

"Who is it? I'm not familiar with the members of Squad Six other than Captain Kuchiki and that bastard Lieutenant Kurosaki." Momo replied causing Yamamoto to narrow his eyes on her.

"So she does not look to Ichigo Kurosaki with much esteem… I will need to keep that in mind." Yamamoto thought. "The former third seat was a prodigy named Ryu Aizawa. He will be your new captain starting tomorrow. If you could remain here though the meeting in which he's inducted will commence in fifteen minutes." He explained before Byakuya and Ichigo entered the room.

"See I told you we'd be early." Ichigo stated after noticing only Momo was present. After thwarting the invasion of the Quincies, Squad Six was repurposed to dealing with affairs pertaining to the world of the living making it acceptable for a substitute Shinigami to become a lieutenant. Though old habits die hard as usually the two never saw eye to eye on certain matters.

"Ichigo Kurosaki, it is better to be on time rather than late, for a Kuchiki being on time is being late." Byakuya replied.

"Tell me you're joking." Ichigo replied.

"Ichigo have I not told you that it is unacceptable to give orders to a superior officer?" Byakuya asked.

"Tch, fine, forgive my insolence Captain Kuchiki." Ichigo replied, though in the perspective of Momo it almost seemed like Ichigo was saying "fine whatever you say bastard".

"All is forgiven, it took Renji several years to understand that lesson and in many ways he never quite grasped the concept. I am pleased that you show a much higher level of comprehension on this matter." Byakuya replied without so much as opening his eyes.

"Ugh… Great she's here." Ichigo thought upon noticing Momo glaring at him. "Bya- I mean Captain, wouldn't you agree that someone should tell Momo that her blunt resentment toward me only strengthens the belief that she is pissed that I defeated Aizen?" He asked.

"Lieutenant Hinamori, may I have a word with you?" Byakuya asked, and Momo reluctantly walked over to Byakuya.

"Yes Captain Kuchiki?" Momo asked as she glared daggers at Ichigo.

"Your blunt resentment of my lieutenant further reinforces the belief many hold that you are disgruntled with my lieutenant for his role in the Winter War. If you are infuriated with him solely out of the fact that he defeated Aizen then your infuriation is misguided, that which you should be angry towards isn't Ichigo Kurosaki, but Aizen for forcing us to act, Ichigo being the only one at the time who could stop him. It wasn't a personal vendetta against Aizen that drove my lieutenant to fight, but rather a sense of duty to defend the allies he has in the world of the living. That is all." Byakuya explained in a hushed tone so that Yamamoto wouldn't hear, but Momo was infuriated by what he had said.

"How dare you! That is not the reason why I hate the bastard! I hate him because his mere existence as a substitute Shinigami insults us real Shinigami! I hate him and whoever helped him to become a substitute in the first place!" Momo shouted, which was a lie, true she hated Ichigo, but she couldn't express with words why she hated him.

"Lieutenant Hinamori allow me to-" Byakuya began to respond but Ichigo cut him off.

"Look hate and insult me all you want, but Rukia gave me the strength I needed to protect my family and friends. Of course my captain severed my soul chain shortly after the fact, after that Kisuke Urahara helped me to get my powers back, and after rescuing Rukia from the Sokyoku Captain Yamamoto had Captain Ukitake issue me the representative badge. They all helped me to grow strong enough to protect everyone, and you have no right to insult them!" Ichigo shouted and Momo took a step back.

"I don't have to take this from a _nothing_ like you!" Momo shouted as she drew Tobiume from it's sheath. "I'm not afraid of you and I downright refuse to be talked down to by a substitute like you! Real Shinigami will always be superior, now snap! Tobiume!" She shouted and in seconds the blade of her zanpakuto changed shape.

"Tch, you want a fight? Fine!" Ichigo replied as he grabbed Zangetsu from his back.

"Bakudo number one, sai!" Byakuya shouted before Ichigo's arms were restrained behind his back, but oddly enough to the two members of Squad Six and Yamamoto as well, the same thing happened simultaneously to Momo.

"Ugh, what happened?" Momo asked as she looked around before resting her eyes on a fifth Shinigami to enter the room.

"Come on you two you're comrades you shouldn't be fighting." The fifth Shinigami stated as he rubbed the back of his head. The Shinigami had burning red hair and brilliant blue eyes. His shihakusho was unusual though, his right sleeve ran down to his wrist, but the left sleeve was pretty much nonexistent, the shitagi was also red when normally it would have been white.

"Hey Ryu what are you doing here?" Ichigo asked upon noticing the man.

"Ichigo, Ryu Aizawa is no longer our third seat. Ryu has been recommended to assume the role of captain for Squad Five." Byakuya explained.

"So you're my new captain?" Momo asked with a hint of fury in her eyes.

"Uh, yeah I guess so… Hey is this meeting going to start soon? I forgot my candy back at the Squad Six barracks, and I could really go for something sweet." Ryu stated nonchalantly.

"He really is just like Yachiru…" Ichigo thought as the two captains released the binding seals.

"Captain Yamamoto why does some kid have to be my new captain?" Momo protested.

"Ryu Aizawa has been recommended for the position by several captains, and he meets all of the requirements to become a captain as detailed by the captain's proficiency test." Yamamoto explained.

"Wait so he fulfilled two of the ways to become captain?" Ichigo asked.

"That is correct." Byakuya stated.

"Well I challenge you for captaincy Ryu Aizawa!" Momo shouted as she pointed at the young Shinigami who in turn gave a heavy sigh.

Three hours later at the Squad Five training grounds Momo was preparing to face off against Ryu. "Are you sure you really want to do this?" Ryu asked as he drew his zanpakuto with his left hand.

"Oh I'm completely sure, Ryu in a few minutes I'll be the next captain for Squad Five!" Momo shouted as a crowd of about two hundred squad members watched in heavy anticipation.

"This is barbaric…" Byakuya thought as everyone waited for the match to begin.

"Alright let's get things started!" Momo exclaimed as she bolted in for an upward slash from the right that Ryu effortlessly blocked.

"So do you think Momo can win?" Ichigo asked as they watched Momo swing wildly at Ryu.

"Who knows?" Byakuya replied as Ryu blocked yet another attack.

"Damn you! I'm not finished yet! Snap! Tobiume!" Momo shouted and once again her zanpakuto sprouted three prongs on the blade. "Now you die!" She shouted as she hurled several fireballs at Ryu.

"Wait her Tobiume is a fire type?" Ichigo asked in exasperation. "Should we end the match? Momo doesn't have a chance in hell of beating Ryu with a fire type zanpakuto." He continued as he watched Ryu dodge the fireballs.

"No this is a lesson that Lieutenant Hinamori must learn for herself." Byakuya explained.

"Tch, all he's done is block or dodge my attacks. Well not anymore…" Momo thought as she strengthened her reiatsu. "Bankai!" She shouted and a second later an explosion engulfed her body, and once the smoke cleared she was seen with a tall staff that had a large ring at the top. "Asahi, Tobiume!" She shouted and every Squad Five member roared in approval of her bankai.

"Bankai? And here I thought we wouldn't have to go that far. Oh man this sucks." Ryu stated as the ring on Tobiume caught fire.

"Here I thought she'd use it on me first." Ichigo blurted out.

"Get ready to die! Taiyoko Imochi!" Momo shouted as she swung the staff around creating a much larger fireball than before.

"That thing… If it explodes everyone here is done for!" Ryu thought as he looked on at the incoming monster of a fireball. "I have no choice… Rise from the ashes, Akai Fenikkusu!" He shouted and his zanpakuto became enveloped in flames that began to take the form of a bird. "Chokyoshi O Kaiko!" He shouted and the phoenix rising from his blade absorbed the fireball completely. "Good I was hoping that would work." He uttered, but Momo became enraged.

"How could he stop it with just one move while in shikai? That doesn't make sense!" Momo shouted as she got ready to swing her staff around again.

"Moetsukiru!" Ryu shouted once more and the phoenix began to flap it's wings giving off several fireballs that exploded upon hitting the ground. After the smoke cleared Momo was lying on the ground as her shihakusho smoldered slightly. "This battle's over, now being that your zanpakuto is also a fire type, you shouldn't be too badly burnt, but keep in mind if you keep fighting you will be incinerated so please just give up." He pleaded as he resealed his zanpakuto before sheathing it.

"Ugh, this battle is over when I become captain." Momo grunted as she struggled to climb to her feet.

"Lieutenant Hinamori that is enough." Byakuya stated after appearing in front of Momo.

"No I haven't beaten him yet!" Momo shouted as she glared up at Byakuya who returned the glare with his own.

"The way you are now… You could never hope to defeat Ryu Aizawa, or did you not notice that he has bested your bankai with only his shikai? Impressive as your efforts were you still haven't mastered your bankai, do you really believe you can master being a captain?" Byakuya asked and Momo's gaze fell to the ground as she clenched her teeth.

"Fine, Ryu Aizawa you may wear the coat but you will never be the captain of Squad Five!" Momo shouted as she pointed at Ryu.

"I though only captains wore those coats, so how can I wear it and not be captain?" Ryu asked as he tried with no success to wrap his mind around what Momo said.

"Just give it up Ryu, or should I call you Captain Aizawa?" Ichigo stated.

"Ryu's fine thanks… Um Ichigo did you remember to bring my candy?" Ryu asked as his face pinked a little.

"Uh, there was no candy in your room." Ichigo replied. "So no I didn't bring your candy." He added.

"But you were supposed to check my room and find that there was none, then you were supposed to get scared by thinking "maybe the new captain will think I ate his candy" and then you were supposed to by me some." Ryu explained.

"Please tell me you're joking." Ichigo replied, but Ryu simply smiled up at him. "Well I guess I could get some as a way of saying congrats on becoming a captain, but come to think of it, you know how Squad Five's members are, they hate when someone comes in from another squad to take charge, so why Squad Five? You could have taken our Kira or Renji, and you may have even been able to give Byakuya a run for his money as well." He explained.

"Yeah, but Squad Five has something no other Squad has." Ryu replied and Ichigo gave him a puzzled look. "Squad Five has the most amazing Shinigami as the lieutenant!" He replied excitedly but quietly so no one could hear, but Ichigo simply gave him a blank stare.

"What in the world could possess you to like her?" Ichigo asked.

"Because she's cute, she's smart, a genius at kido, and she has a fire type zanpakuto as well." Ryu explained, but Ichigo didn't have the heart to tell him the truth, that after showing her how much weaker she was than him, she would probably never warm up.

Prologue end - Yet a new fanfic, this one is dedicated to a friend on here named alienvspredator5 and he/she came up with the idea for Ryu, after that we brainstormed on a basic storyline which will begin with chapter one, anyway R&R.

(Shunpo back to the laptop for the second fic)

Disclaimer: I do not own bleach, because I'm American and not Tite Kubo.

Partial Disclaimer: I do not own the OC Ryu, but I did give him the last name Aizawa, as for the prologue credit goes to alienvspredator5 for the situation of Ryu becoming captain of squad five and liking momo, and Ryu's zanpakuto, though the release command and two attacks as well as momo's bankai were my ideas, other than that the storyline was my part, but starting on chapter one, half of the storyline can be accredited to alienvspredator5. Please read on when I upload more, and reviews are always welcome.


	2. Ryu's Peachy Dilemma

**Chapter 1: Ryu's Peachy Dilemma**

It had already been seven months since Ryu became captain of Squad Five, but in that seven months things were rather rocky. "For the last time I absolutely refuse!" Momo shouted as she threw a stack of paperwork back at the young captain.

"But Momo there's too much for me to do, and the other captains have help from their lieutenants." Ryu wined as he straightened up the papers that had fallen to the floor.

"Well the other lieutenants actually respect their captains." Momo replied.

"Don't say that you're hurting my… Wait since when did Ichigo respect Captain Kuchiki?" Ryu asked absentmindedly prompting Momo to slap him in the face.

"How many times have I told you to not say that bastard's name in my presence?" Momo shouted as she glared at her captain.

"You shouldn't say that about him, and besides you know he'll never be as efficient in kido as you." Ryu stated awkwardly.

"What? Where did kido efficiency come into this? Ugh never mind I'm going for a walk." Momo replied angrily as she stormed over to the door.

"Okay then have fun." Ryu called after her before hearing the door slam. "Geez you'd think that all that hate she has would make her ugly, but man she just gets cuter and cuter each day." He thought as he smiled at a picture of Momo he snuck of her one morning. "Oh, I wonder if things will ever smoothen out between us…" He uttered with a sigh.

"At this rate they won't." Ichigo stated from the doorway.

"Ah! Ichigo how long have you been standing there?" Ryu asked in a panic.

"You can relax Ryu or are you forgetting again that I already know about your little crush on Momo?" Ichigo asked.

"Uh, well, anyway what brings you by?" Ryu asked with an innocent expression on his face.

"Well Byakuya…" Ichigo paused as he looked over his shoulder. "Byakuya ordered me to come deliver an invitation to you about his annual cherry blossom party." He continued as he held out an envelope with Ryu's full name and title on the front.

"Oh, thanks…" Ryu replied as he took the envelope before placing it in his desk drawer. Upon noticing that Ichigo was still present Ryu looked back up from his paperwork. "Something else I can help you with?" He asked as a scowl covered Ichigo's mouth.

"He ordered me to make sure you read it, and also to get an answer for whether or not you'll be coming." Ichigo replied irritably.

"Oh, okay give me a sec." Ryu stated as he pulled the envelope back out before opening it. "Captain Ryu Aizawa of Squad Five you are cordially invited to the Kuchiki Manor this weekend to attend the Kuchikis' annual cherry blossom party. This Saturday a wide assortment of food and beverages will be served as the cherry blossoms dance in the wind… P.S.: some of the petals may be from Byakuya but please come anyway…" Ryu read from the invitation. "I know I'm young but this doesn't seem to be written by Captain Kuchiki does it?" He asked.

"Well Rukia and I brainstormed to come up with something a little better than what Byakuya had written, can't you tell by the horrible drawing of that dumb rabbit? Though honestly I swear I didn't put that last part, but I wish I had thought of it." Ichigo replied with a smirk.

"Well are we allowed to bring a guest?" Ryu asked.

"That depends." Ichigo replied.

"Depends on what?" Ryu asked as he leaned forward over his desk.

"Well is your guest Momo?" Ichigo asked.

"Um, yeah." Ryu replied.

"Then no you can't bring a guest." Ichigo retorted.

"Did Captain Kuchiki say that or is that just because you two don't get along?" Ryu asked as he pouted.

"Well that girl barely gets along with anyone that has a poor impression of Aizen, but unfortunately no, I was only joking, but I would definitely advise against it. Do you even want to imagine how many arguments she'll get into?" Ichigo asked.

"I don't care, I bet she'd be sad if I didn't invite her, and she later finds out that she could have gone to a party but didn't because I refused to invite her." Ryu pointed out.

"Kid, someone needs to help you fix your logic." Ichigo thought. "Well just try and keep her out of trouble on Saturday." He finished before leaving the room.

"Don't worry Ichigo, I know she won't cause any trouble." Ryu thought confidently as he returned to his paperwork.

After a few hours passed the sun had set, and Ryu had finally finished the paperwork. "Man that was torture." He thought as he locked down the offices for the night. When he left the barracks he was surprised to find Momo walking toward him, but as usual she looked less than happy to see him. "Oh good evening Momo, did you have a nice walk?" He asked casually with a beaming smile.

"Do you want to explain to me why half of the Seireitei thinks we're dating?" Momo asked with a very prominent sense of fury in her voice.

"We're dating? Really? Since when?" Ryu asked with a warm smile.

"No we are not dating you idiot! Half of the Seireitei is talking about how the young captain of Squad Five is taking his lieutenant out for a date this Saturday. Do you have any idea why that might be?" Momo asked as she looked up into Ryu's blue eyes.

"Huh? Saturday… Saturday? Oh! That's right Saturday is Captain Kuchiki's party and I asked Ichigo if it would be alright for me to bring you as my guest." Ryu admitted, but his reply prompted Momo into slapping him across the face.

"How dare you make rash decisions concerning me without my consent!" Momo shouted. "And more than that, Ichigo of all people is involved in this? Just what the hell did you two talk about?" She continued as Ryu rubbed the red mark on his cheek.

"Well I just told you he invited me to Captain Kuchiki's party and I asked him if you could come along as my "plus one"." Ryu replied.

"Ugh, never mind, it seems like I'll have to find Ichigo and have him straighten things out." Momo stated before running off.

"Wha… What just happened?" Ryu asked as he continued to rub his cheek.

Meanwhile Ichigo was having dinner with Rukia and Byakuya when they heard a furious pounding at the front door. "Ichigo could you answer the door?" Byakuya asked with a side glance to Ichigo.

Ichigo scowled but ultimately realized it would be better if he didn't anger his captain, after realizing what was really written on the invitations he and Rukia had already received an earful from the uptight captain. Though when he opened the door he began to wish he had refused his captain's orders. "Oh, Momo was it, what do you-" He was interrupted when a very enraged Momo slapped him across the face.

"You bastard how dare you spread such outlandish lies about me!" Momo shouted before slapping him again.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Ichigo shouted back at Momo.

"You went around half of the Seireitei and told everyone that Ryu and I were dating! You had no right to do that even if by some sick prank it were true!" Momo shouted.

"What are you talking about? Unless it's about the party Byakuya's having on Saturday and even then I only told Rukia that Ryu was planning on asking you." Ichigo explained through gritted teeth.

Having heard the shouting match Rukia and Byakuya came to investigate. "Oh Momo good evening, how are you?" Rukia asked in a sickeningly sweet voice.

"Rukia did you tell everyone that Ryu and I were dating?" Momo asked nearly on the brink of tears.

"Well I didn't tell anyone you were dating, but I though Captain Hitsugaya would like to know that Ryu wanted to invite you, and I guess I may have made the mistake of telling him in front of Rangiku." Rukia replied with a nervous chuckle. "She may have blown things out of proportion though." She continued as she tried to cheer the other lieutenant up.

"Why would you do that?" Momo asked as tears flooded from her eyes. "Now I'm going to be the laughing stock of every squad." She continued as she sank to her knees.

"I've had enough of this!" Ichigo barked as he grabbed Momo's wrist before yanking her up to her feet.

"What are you doing you bastard!" Momo shouted as Ichigo began to drag her away.

"Simple, you'll just continue to blame me for everything that's going on just like that mess with Kira a few years ago, well this time I'm going to personally rectify this before I have another few weeks of hell from you." Ichigo explained.

"Is he really going to go around to every Shinigami and personally tell them the truth of the matter?" Rukia asked as she blankly stared at the other two lieutenants walking away.

"Why do you even care!" Momo shouted as she pulled her arm free.

"I already told you, you'd give me nothing but hell, so I'm going to end it before it gets worse. Now I remember Rukia mentioning that Squad Nine does this magazine, and if I'm remembering correctly it's supposed to be printed tomorrow, so we go tell Renji what's going on and have him run an article." Ichigo explained. "Believe me I don't want to deal with you any more than you want to deal with me, unless you have a better idea." He continued, but Momo shook her head.

"Fine, I'll trust you this one time, but if Renji gets this wrong I will never forgive you!" Momo barked.

"Are you trying to say I was already on your good side because you could have fooled me." Ichigo stated absentmindedly before receiving a kick from Momo. "Okay I deserved that." He uttered as he rubbed his back.

"Look I don't like you or Ryu, and I'm pretty sure even you two aren't dumb enough not to notice, so do you know what Ryu was thinking about inviting me?" Momo asked in a slightly less irritated tone of voice.

"Honestly I thought he only thought about candy, but to be completely honest, he didn't think you'd like to miss out on going to Byakuya's party this Saturday, though don't tell him I said that. He'd probably start wining to have be buy him candy to make up for it." Ichigo explained.

"You're a horrible liar you know that right?" Momo asked.

"Whatever you say…" Ichigo replied as he rolled his eyes.

After getting Renji to agree to publish the article Momo left on her own, but having been well past midnight Renji was able to influence Ichigo to spend the night in the Soul Society, and the two went out for a few drinks with Hisagi and Kira. "So wait, you're saying she actually thought you were lying?" Hisagi asked with a chuckle.

"Yeah can you believe it? Why would I have reason to lie to her about that?" Ichigo asked.

"I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the concept of the poor captain having a crush on her…" Hisagi continued. "Man the kid sure can pick em." He added on before downing another cup.

"Well don't you think you should have talked to Ryu about this, I mean what if he gets upset that there's an article about to be published basically broadcasting to every Shinigami that the girl hates him?" Kira asked.

"Don't worry Izuru, I've already worked out all of those details, and all I'll say is that their relationship is strictly professional. Though while we're on the topic, Ichigo how long before you grow a pair and ask Rukia out?" Renji asked and Ichigo spat out the sake he was drinking.

"Wait what did you say captain?" Hisagi asked as he poured himself some more sake.

"Renji I told you these things take time and I'll ask her when the time is right." Ichigo replied as Renji mouthed the words along with him prompting the other two guys to burst into a fit of laughter.

The commotion the guys were making began to draw some attention and before any of them knew it, Rangiku and Shunsui had joined their little party. "So wait you mean they're not dating?" Rangiku asked with a look of disappointment on her face.

"Are you serious do you even want to know how many times I've had to use shunpo to get him away from her before bad things happened?" Ichigo asked as he stared down into his cup. "It would just be a repeat of the day they fought for the rank of captain." He continued before downing his sake.

"So she still hates him huh?" Shunsui asked before downing his drink.

"Well yeah, think about it, she really wanted to be a captain, and the day she's told she's finally fit, Ryu comes in just to basically send the message that she'll be stuck as a lieutenant for a while longer." Ichigo explained as he poured himself another.

"Now hold on you're getting away from the point Ichigo, we have a young friend whose heart needs a little help, and I think it would be wrong of us to ignore him." Shunsui stated with a grin as he poured some more sake.

"Okay let's imagine for just a moment that I agreed and decided to help get them together, how would we do it when the girl hates him more than she hates hollows?" Ichigo asked as he rubbed his eyes.

"Hmm, I didn't think about that, but let me ask Nanao she might have a few better ideas." Shunsui stated before the two men downed their drinks.

"Now hold on I didn't say I'd do this, it was more of a hypothetical question." Ichigo replied.

"I realize that, but I'm still going to get a hypothetical answer from Nanao." Shunsui replied with a chuckle.

"I agree with Captain Kyoraku, Ichigo… The kid obviously needs help." Renji stated as he downed another cup.

"Yeah, but what if he doesn't want help?" Ichigo asked. "He may want to do this himself, kind of like how I am." He added and Rangiku perked her head up.

"This is the first time I ever heard of you having an interest in love, so is there anyone you like?" Rangiku asked.

"Even if there was someone I had my eyes on, if I told you the entire Seireitei would know before I even had time to leave this bar." Ichigo retorted.

"It's Rukia." Renji blurted out casually before Ichigo blasted him in the jaw, but when he looked up to silence Rangiku he was horrified to discover that she had already vanished.

"Ugh, something tells me things are about to get really bad." Ichigo stated before downing another drink.

"Well it's either going to help or hurt you, thought either way it will be rather fun to watch." Shunsui stated. "Here I'll buy the next bottle." He added.

Two hours later the group was leaving the bar. "So wheres should we goes next?" Ichigo asked as he stumbled before falling against a wall.

"Well Rangiku always has a stash of sake at the Squad Tens barracks, I thinks it's unlocked." Kira stated with a hiccup.

"Wait, I have a better idea!" Ichigo exclaimed. "We find Ryu and have him show us his sanban kaihou." He continued.

"You're rights!" Hisagi shouted.

After a half an hour of stumbling around the group finally came upon Ryu's home, and proceeded to pound on the door. "Ryu!" Ichigo called out, but only silence followed.

"I don't think he's here." Renji stated.

"What? Of course he's here, it's his house." Ichigo replied before pounding on the door again. "Ryu, come on Ryu we're here!" He called out again, but once more there was only silence.

"Maybe he's asleep." Hisagi stated.

"Huh, well hold on I have something I wanna try, and this will blow your minds." Ichigo stated before clearing his throat. "Oh really Momo, you say you like Ryu too?" He called into the door, and immediately the group could here the rapid approach of footsteps before Ryu answered the door. "Ah I knew that'd work." He stated triumphantly as the others gave him a round of applause.

"Hey, where's Momo?" Ryu asked as he looked around the group.

"Grab him before he goes back inside!" Renji shouted, and Hisagi and Kira both grabbed an arm. "Sorry kid, Ichigo lied, and obviously she's probably home in bed sleeping, but while we originally wanted you to show us that new bankai thing, I have a better idea." He explained, but before Ryu could even think of voicing a rejection they were outside Momo's home.

"Um, guys is coming here at this hour really a good idea?" Ryu asked, and after the others exchanged glances they all turned back to him.

"Of course it is." They all replied in unison.

"Renji it might be better if you take the honors." Ichigo stated.

"Right." Renji replied with as serious an expression as he could form in his half-drunken state. "Ahem, Momo, wake up Momo, we have someone here that wants to see you, come out here Momo!" He called out, and a few minutes later Momo opened her window before sticking her head out.

"What do you want Renji, it's almost three in the morning." Momo replied as she rubbed her eyes.

"We have someone here that wants to confess his undying love for you!" Hisagi stated, but instead of grabbing Ryu, he had grabbed a hold of Shunsui before pushing him forward.

"On second thought, I'll need another bottle and you'll need a few more years." Shunsui stated before the group burst into laughter with the exception of Ryu who was busy trying to calm the others down.

"You're joking right, you woke me up for this, and… Wait what are those two doing here?" Momo asked as a look of irritation covered her face.

"Ha, she spelled to wrong." Ichigo joked.

"What?" Ryu asked as he jerked his head around toward Ichigo. "Look I appreciate what you guys are trying to do, really, but I think it would do you some good to sober up first." He continued.

"But I'm sotally tober." Kira stated.

"Well forget this the kid's not gonna do it, so let's go hit up the Kuchiki Manor." Hisagi stated and Shunsui let out a low whistle.

"Yeah, we should, and if Byakuya gets angry I'll handle him." Shunsui stated. "Come on Kurosaki it's your turn now." He continued.

"My turn for what?" Ichigo asked in the process of passing out.

"Wait are you guys all drunk?" Momo and Ryu asked in unison.

"I'm not as think as you drunk I am!" Renji shouted as he balled up his fists.

"Ryu you better get these idiots out of here before I contact Squad Two." Momo warned before slamming her window shut.

"Oh man, now look what you guys did." Ryu stated.

"Shut up and help us drag Ichigo to the Kuchiki place." Shunsui stated.

"Oh this is going to be a long night." Ryu stated as he held Ichigo up as they began to walk toward the Kuchiki Manor.

Upon arriving at the Kuchiki Manor the group positioned themselves in one of the gardens. "So which room is Rukia's?" Hisagi asked as Kira gently slapped Ichigo a few times to keep him awake.

"It's that one." Renji stated as he pointed at a window.

"Are you sure, if we get the wrong one we'll be dealing with a very angry Captain Kuchiki." Hisagi stated.

"I'm dead sure." Renji stated. "Well here goes, Rukia are you awake, Ichigo needs to tell you something important!" Renji called out, and a few moments later they saw the window slide open before Rukia leaned her head out.

"Unh, Renji, what are you doing here? Do you have any idea what time it is?" Rukia asked as she rubbed her eyes.

"Hah, told ya." Renji stated as he smirked at Hisagi. "Well Rukia I'm glad you asked, you see we brought Ichigo here because he wanted to tell you something important." He stated.

"I did?" Ichigo asked as he swayed.

"Yeah just remember this is all a dream and let your mouth take care of the rest." Renji stated with a snicker.

"Um guys maybe this isn't such a great idea." Ryu warned but Ichigo wasn't quite in the right state of mind to listen.

"Rukia I just wants to say that I really like the way your mouth moves when you talk, and I like that you're good at killing hollows, but mostly I like the way you used to look when we were in school, and also the way that weird sword you used on me shined on your face, so I got to ask if you'd come to my captain's cherry blossom party with me." Ichigo stated as he nodded slightly.

"Oh god, how much did he drink?" Rukia asked.

"Seven…" Shunsui stated with a hiccup.

"Seven drinks? That's it?" Rukia asked a little unimpressed.

"No, seventeen bottles." Shunsui corrected himself.

"Seventeen! Good god, are you trying to kill him?" Rukia asked as she jumped out the window.

"What, he wanted to drown his sorrows after Rangiku found out he liked you, and then we got to think and decided it would be better for his ego if he confessed to you himself, but when we left we tried to help young Ryu, and now here we are." Renji explained. "I know this isn't a good time, but while the rest of us need to get to bed, Ichigo would never make it home, so could he sleep here?" He asked before Ichigo passed out on his feet.

"Ugh, fine help me get him into the house." Rukia stated, and after a few minutes everyone else was on their ways home.

As Ryu walked through the streets he began to notice the sun rising. "Well at least I got a few hours of sleep." He thought as he let out a deep sigh. "Well maybe I could get a small nap at the office." He thought as he opened the door to the barracks. "Man how did I get dragged into all that?" He wondered as he sat down at his desk, and when he laid his head down on his desk he was out in moments.

A half hour later Momo entered Ryu's office. "Here's the paperwork." She stated as she dropped the stack down on his desk. "Hey, are you awake?" She asked as she opened one of his eyes.

"Unh, five more minutes." Ryu replied.

"No not five more minutes, you have a job to do, and you should be thankful I didn't have you all reported to Squad Two." Momo replied.

"Come on, that wasn't even my fault, I was the guy telling the others that what they were doing was a bad idea, but they didn't listen and ended up dragging me basically all over the Seireitei, so please just give me five more minutes, and I promise you I will not ask you for a thing today." Ryu replied without even lifting his head off the desk.

"Fine you can have five more minutes, but only five!" Momo shouted, and a moment later she could tell Ryu was asleep. "Tch, he always has to be childish about everything." She uttered before noticing that his desk drawer was open. "God he's so unorganized. I don't understand how he got the members of this squad to warm up to him so easily." She thought as she shut the drawer. "Well maybe I should be a little nicer, he may not look like it, but he is about the same age as Toshiro… Maybe I'm being too hard on him." She thought before taking a small stack of paperwork. "Though this is as far as I go in helping you out." She thought as she began with the paperwork.

The rest of the week continued on without incident, and finally it was Saturday. "Thanks again for coming with me Momo." Ryu stated as they approached the front door to the Kuchiki Manor.

"I just don't get why you insisted on it being me." Momo replied irritably.

"Well I thought you'd enjoy coming to the party too, you know get out of the office for the day for a fun day under the cherry blossoms." Ryu explained as he knocked on the door. "Just one more thing though, I know you have no interest in doing what I say, but if anyone says anything derogatory about you, tell me and I'll handle it." He stated before Rukia answered the door. "Sorry are we late?" He asked.

"Well no, but Byakuya just finished addressing our guests, and they all went out into the garden." Rukia replied as she led the two through the house.

"You know I'm curious, the other night when Ichigo and the others got wasted, how did things turn out between the two of you?" Ryu asked, and Rukia flinched.

"Wait you mean you weren't drunk?" Rukia asked in horror.

"Wait what's going on?" Momo asked.

"Well remember the other night when me, Ichigo, and a few other guys woke you up, well when we left the guys thought it'd be a great idea to come over here and wake Rukia up, and Ichigo said some things." Ryu stated with a carefree grin.

"Ugh, so you do remember the other night. Well Ichigo and the others don't remember anything and luckily, even though Rangiku somehow found out about the situation, she agreed to keep quiet about it, so hopefully this will all just go away." Rukia explained as her face reddened slightly.

"Why? If I finally worked up the courage to confess my love for the girl I love I would hope that she wouldn't be so dismissive." Ryu stated with a humble expression.

"Who do you like?" Rukia asked, and this time Ryu flinched at the question.

"Oh, n-no one, it was purely hypothetical." Ryu replied nervously.

"Right, if that's what you believe." Rukia stated with a cocked eyebrow.

"Am I missing something?" Momo asked and Ryu nearly jumped out of his skin.

"God you nearly scared me to death." Ryu stated and Rukia's eyes widened.

"Oh, I see now." Rukia teased.

"See what? What are you two hiding?" Momo asked as she glared at Ryu.

"Uh, when I think you're ready to know I'll let you know." Ryu replied with a nervous grin.

"You know, you can be a real dick sometimes." Momo replied irritably.

"So you keep saying." Ryu replied with a heavy sigh.

Meanwhile at the underground prison that housed Aizen a Shinigami approached the imprisoned man. "So Captain Aizen it's been quite a while." The Shinigami stated as he narrowed his silver eyes on the shamed captain.

"Weren't you my former sixth seat, what was your name, Yoshi Aizawa right?" Aizen asked.

"Yeah, I'm pleased you remember me. So you know what happens next right?" Yoshi asked as he ran a hand through his burning red hair, and Aizen simply gave him his usual caring smile.

Back at the party Ichigo and Rukia had gotten into an argument when Ryu accidentally mentioned Ichigo's remarks about the rabbit on the invitation. "Seriously then if you can draw better you make the invitations next time!" She shouted.

"Good going Ryu, seriously." Momo stated bluntly.

"Well what was I supposed to do, if you didn't mention wanting to see the invite, Rukia wouldn't have talked about it and I wouldn't have let that slip." Ryu replied. "Besides it's not like I purposely threw him under the bus, I mean Ichigo's like my best friend." He continued.

Upon noticing Ichigo and Rukia arguing, Byakuya signaled for a band to start playing. "Well it seems as though Captain Kuchiki noticed the argument." Momo stated.

"Hey Momo, would you like to dance?" Ryu asked as his face reddened slightly.

"Tell me you're joking… I agreed to try and tolerate you because this is the Kuchikis' party, but that does not me I have to be nice!" Momo shouted as she stormed off.

"Wait, I'm sorry, hold on!" Ryu called out as he ran after her. After running for a few minutes he finally caught up to Momo. "Look I was just getting into the spirit of the festivities, so why don't you come back to the party, and we can forget I ever asked you that." he suggested, but without warning he received a slap to the face.

"I don't think so, after what you said just now I am in no mood to enjoy any kind of party. Now go away!" Momo shouted as she continued walking.

"Come on don't be like that… Okay look, I understand you hate me, but if that's the case why are you allowing me to effect your mood? Just come back to the party and we won't even have to speak to each other." Ryu suggested.

"Look my mood is in no way influenced by someone as pathetic as you! I just wasn't enjoying the party as it was, and you simply gave me the motivation to leave." Momo replied bluntly as Ryu followed after her.

"Why are you so negative about everything? I mean what did I ever do to deserve how badly you've been treating me?" Ryu asked as he struggled to keep up.

"Well I don't know, maybe it has something to do with the fact that you became captain on the day Captain Yamamoto told me that if you had not applied I would have been fit to be captain, or maybe it's because you're such good friends with that bastard lieutenant of Squad Six." Momo replied nastily. "Though it doesn't really matter, because there is absolutely nothing you can do or say that will change my opinion of you. Do you hear me, I hate you more than anything and I always will." She continued, but her words brought a few tears to Ryu's eyes.

"Is that how you really feel?" Ryu asked submissively.

"Yes, I will always hate you, god why can't you understand that!" Momo shouted, but before Ryu could reply the two began to hear the alarms sounding, and seconds later a few members of the Onmitsukido appeared with Soifon.

"Captain Sui Feng, what's going on?" Ryu asked as he wiped his eyes.

"Captain Ryu Aizawa, I have some terrible news, Sosuke Aizen has been set free, and I have come to arrest our only suspect." Soifon stated with a glare at Momo.

"Wait, I-" Momo was interrupted by Ryu.

"Like hell I'll let that happen, there's no way Momo could have done that, she's been with me this whole time!" Ryu shouted.

"Ryu I understand you trust your lieutenant, but the rest of the Shinigami all know that Momo is the most likely to have set Aizen free." Soifon replied.

"No not everyone, I know for a fact that even if she wasn't with me she wouldn't have done it." Ryu continued.

"This is not up for debate, Momo come with us, or am I going to have to get physical?" Soifon asked as she drew Suzumebachi.

"I told you I will not let that happen!" Ryu shouted as he drew Akai Fenikkusu. "Momo Hinamori is my lieutenant and I will not see her falsely accused and arrested for a crime she couldn't and wouldn't have committed!" He continued.

"Fine, sting all enemies to death, Suzumebachi!" Soifon shouted and instantly her zanpakuto transformed.

"Rise from the ashes, Akai Fenikkusu!" Ryu shouted, and shortly following a phoenix had replaced the blade. "I will not back down." He continued as he held his ground. "Momo, I want you to run… You need to get out of here quickly!" He shouted, but before he could say anything else he felt a stabbing pain in his back, and he looked back and saw that Soifon had pierced him in the back.

"You should know Ryu, you don't have much hope of defeating me." Soifon stated as she reeled her arm back, but when she went in for another attack Ryu dodged it.

"Whew, that was too close." Ryu stated calmly, but as he looked around he was relieved that Momo actually followed one of his orders for once. "Good, she got away." He thought before turning his attention back on Soifon. "Sui Feng, if Aizen really has been set free shouldn't you be more concerned with tracking him down? The hogyoku may no longer exist, but he's still dangerous, so why are you wasting your time bullying Momo?" He asked, but Soifon merely narrowed her eyes on Ryu.

"I am simply following protocol. As I said Momo Hinamori is the most likely to set him free, and even if that wasn't the case, Aizen has already fled from the Soul Society." Soifon replied.

"Then we should hunt him down!" Ryu shouted.

"That is not for you to decide!" Soifon shouted back. "Now I must also inform you that you are obstructing my duties. If you do not get out of my way and let me do my job, you will suffer the consequences." Soifon warned, but Ryu held his ground. "Fine prepare to die!" She shouted before charging in at him.

"I won't die so easily! Moetsukiru!" Ryu shouted and the phoenix that was his zanpakuto began to flap its wings sending out searing balls of fire that forced Soifon to jump back. "I won't let you anywhere near her! Now once again, Moetsukiru!" He shouted, but this time before the fireballs could hit their target a wave of ice doused them as it rushed past. When the two stunned captains looked to where the ice had originated from their eyes fell on the captain of Squad Ten. "Captain Hitsugaya, what are you doing here?" He asked.

"I should be asking both of you the same question, unless special wartime permits are given, no captain or lieutenant should be permitted to release their zanpakuto." Toshiro stated angrily as more captains arrived, and a second later Omaeda arrived as well.

"Captain, we have the Squad Five lieutenant in custody. Mission accomplished." Omaeda stated with a satisfied smirk.

"What did you say you fat tub of lard?" Ryu asked as he glared at Omaeda.

"What did you call me!" Omaeda shot back.

"Enough!" Yamamoto shouted. "Sui Feng, take Ryu Aizawa into custody, and after you're done report to my office." He stated.

"Wait, Head Captain, what am I guilty of?" Ryu asked.

"Ryu, I specifically gave Sui Feng the order to apprehend your lieutenant, but you took it upon yourself to inhibit her duty, as such you will be taken into custody while this mess gets straightened out, or would you rather continue to resist?" Yamamoto asked as he narrowed his eyes on Ryu.

"No, I accept the circumstances, but before I go, I know for a fact Momo had nothing to do with Aizen's escape, and I implore you to listen to reason. The longer we spend at each other's throats the more time he has to grow in strength." Ryu stated calmly.

"Ryu Aizawa, only time will tell if your faith in your lieutenant is justified. Now Sui Feng you have your orders." Yamamoto stated before vanishing.

"See Ryu, it was inevitable, and had you just allowed me to do my job, you wouldn't be getting arrested now." Soifon stated as she bound Ryu's arms behind his back before taking his zanpakuto.

"Will she get a fair trial?" Ryu asked as Soifon led him away.

"That matter shouldn't concern you." Soifon stated.

"So in other words all of you are going to judge her with extreme prejudice." Ryu replied earning him a glare from Soifon.

"You would do well to mind your tongue, you're in enough trouble as it stands." Soifon replied.

"What's going to happen to her when you all misjudge her as guilty?" Ryu asked.

"We won't be misjudging anything, but when she's found guilty Tobiume will be destroyed, Momo will be stripped of her powers, and inevitably she will be placed in the Nest of Maggots, and if you're not careful you'll be joining her." Soifon stated.

"Of course." Ryu replied submissively.

Chapter 1 end - well I know it's been a while since I worked on this, but after messaging back and forth with the person who came up with the idea for this, I kind of got back in the mood to continue this, after all it is my very first request, so I couldn't leave him/her hanging. Anyway what do you think? I realize I may have done a poor job of getting the characters in character, but I will try and do better with the next chapter, aside from that while I was writing this chapter my internet went out, roughly at the part where Ichigo and the others started drinking, so I couldn't research anything that wasn't already written which is why there wasn't too much fighting, but now that it's back up the next chapter will be better. Anyway reviews please.

(Shunpo to pay the internet bill, like a boss)

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, but if I did I would put out a manga chapter twice a weak.

Partial Disclaimer: This is a joint project written by myself, but the ideas for this story are a collaboration of myself and alienvspredator5, though I believe the name has been changed since I began writing this, anyway once again Ryu was made by my partner, as was the idea for his zanpakuto, though Yoshi Aizawa is my own oc, though the storyline for this chapter was my idea, all ideas I came up with were ran past my partner on this, so yeah read on and of course I welcome reviews.


	3. Stripped of Rank

**Chapter 2: Stripped of Rank**

Ryu was angry as he sat in a jail cell across from Momo. "Why do they have to waste time on this?" He asked himself out loud.

"Ugh, will you give it a rest already?" Momo asked irritably.

"No I will not give it a rest! This is seriously messed up!" Ryu shouted. "I mean come on, it's obvious they're just bullying you!" He continued after a few moments of silence.

"What do you care?" Momo asked in utter defeat.

"I care a lot, you're my lieutenant after all!" Ryu exclaimed.

"And whose fault is that?" Momo asked angrily.

"Seriously? Everyday I try to be as nice as I can be, I try to be understanding, but I don't get why you are always so cold to me." Ryu replied.

"You're kidding right? The day I get cleared to advance to captain you come in and screw it all up, and for what!? Seriously, your strength makes you capable of standing on even ground with almost every other captain, so why choose five?" Momo shouted.

"Well… True I could have tried for other squads, but then I wouldn't… Ugh, never mind, you'd never believe me." Ryu replied as he laid down.

"Because half of everything you say is a joke!" Momo shouted angrily.

Ryu thought about telling her everything on his mind, but ultimately his nervousness got the better of him as he remained quiet until Omaeda showed up. "Captain Aizawa, the captain wants to see you now." He stated as he unlocked Ryu's cell.

"I hope you get sentenced to spend a few decades in the Nest of Maggots!" Momo shouted as Omaeda led Ryu out.

When Omaeda led Ryu into Soifon's office, Ryu instantly took in everything he could about the situation. "She looks angry still, and Lieutenant Omaeda is probably still angry about me calling him fat… And she has a firm hand on Suzumebachi." He thought as his eyes darted around the room.

"Alright Ryu Aizawa, let's begin, I want you to tell me everything you know about Momo Hinamori's whereabouts over the past few days." Soifon stated without looking up from a few pieces of paper on her desk.

"Okay, well, Friday afternoon she was helping me with my paperwork, and-" Ryu cut himself off when he saw Soifon taking notes. "What are you writing there?" He asked nervously.

"Don't mind me, I'm also evaluating you on whether or not you are capable of the duties of a captain. We captains set an example for our subordinate officers, and we can't have any of us breaking our own rules." Soifon replied. "Continue." She ordered.

"Okay, well after we finished we both left for the day." Ryu replied.

"Alright, take him back to his cell." Soifon ordered Omaeda.

"But I wasn't finished!" Ryu replied.

"Yes you are, the breakout happened early yesterday morning, and you just said it yourself that you two went home separately." Soifon replied irritably.

"True, but I'm not finished yet, we went home separately yeah, but I always like to make sure she gets home safe by tracking her reiatsu, and Friday evening, I tracked her until she got to her house, and she didn't go anywhere before I picked her up to go to Captain Kuchiki's cherry blossom party." Ryu explained.

"Hmm, and is there anyone that can vouch for your whereabouts?" Soifon asked as she narrowed her eyes on a shocked Ryu.

"Captain, are you insinuating that I would betray the Gotei Thirteen?" Ryu asked angrily. "How dare you!" He shouted as he stood up before Omaeda forced him back down in the chair.

"Aizawa, answer the question!" Soifon shouted.

Ryu bit his lip as he looked away. "No, no one can vouch for me to the best of my knowledge." He replied submissively.

"I see… Omaeda, take him back and bring me Momo Hinamori." Soifon replied as she continued to write down notes about Ryu.

"Uh yes sir Captain!" Omaeda exclaimed obediently as he yanked Ryu up by the collar, but when they went to leave Soifon's office, they met with a Soul Reaper blocking their path.

"Sorry I'm late Soifon, but I believe you were about to interrogate this man." The Soul Reaper stated with a grin, and Omaeda looked back to his captain.

"Ugh, you again, what do you want Lee?" Soifon asked irritably as an exasperated smirk covered her face.

"Well I came to defend Captain Aizawa's actions." Lee replied with a grin as he scratched at his head of brown hair.

"Really now, and what could you possibly do to prove that these two were not involved?" Soifon asked. "Amuse me." She thought as she folded her arms across her chest.

"Well sadly I can't prove that Momo wasn't involved, but Ryu must be forgetting that I came by his house Friday evening to invite him out for drinks, but leave it to the innocent boy to refuse, kids, what can you do?" Lee asked with a goofy grin, and while Ryu knew immediately that Lee was lying to Soifon, he was happy that an old friend was here to help him out.

"It's just as Lee said, I forgot about the invitation as I was a bit preoccupied with how to ease the tension between me and my lieutenant." Ryu lied.

"Quit lying to me, Lee you were bugging me all Friday afternoon, so I know for a fact that you weren't at Ryu's home." Soifon replied.

"Ah but you see, I used a hell butterfly." Lee replied with a grin.

"Really, you of all people, the man who can't be bothered to remember the difference between shikai and bankai, the man that no one knows how he graduated the academy, he learned not only how to use a hell butterfly, but right at the time needed to prove Ryu's innocence? Do you really expect me to believe that?" Soifon asked with an amused grin.

"No, in all honesty I just wanted to see you." Lee replied with a grin. "Come on, give the kid some slack, do you really think he'd conspire with Momo to release Aizen? It would be going against his own intentions." He explained.

"Going against his own intentions you say? Enlighten me." Soifon replied.

"Sorry Ryu, but yeah, he's been like in love with Momo ever since he first saw her, and with how she saw Aizen, releasing the guy would do him no favors." Lee explained.

"Elaborate." Soifon ordered. "I mean, if he is in love with Momo Hinamori, that would give him motive to release Aizen." She continued.

"Not entirely, if Aizen was released by Momo, you would eventually figure it out, and she would end up being the target of a kill-on-sight order, Ryu wouldn't let that happen, and he's just too innocent to betray us all." Lee replied. "See, the thing that gives him a motive is the same thing that takes it away." He continued proudly.

"I see… But regardless, he still inhibited my duties, and that is not something you can talk his way out of." Soifon replied.

"Well a few years ago Captain Kyoraku and Ukitake inhibited the duties of other Soul Reapers, and did they get even a night in jail, a fine, anything?" Lee asked.

Soifon gritted her teeth before her expression changed to aggravation. "I don't get you, one day you act like a complete imbecile, and the next you decide to show that you are pretty smart, why can't you just be consistent?" She asked as she rubbed her eyes. "Ugh, fine, take Ryu and get the hell out of my barracks!" She ordered.

"Much obliged my fair captain, Ryu, let's go." Lee explained quickly as he helped the young captain to his feet. "Before she changes her mind." He whispered as the two left the room.

"So what was that back there, it almost looked like you have a thing for Captain Sui Feng." Ryu pointed out.

"An amazing woman to be honest." Lee replied giddily.

"You're kidding right? Sure she's skilled and all, but she has the personality of a pissed-off hollow." Ryu reasoned, and Lee shoved the young captain against a wall. "What are you doing?" He asked angrily.

"Shut up and be completely straight with me, and remember, I know when you're lying, but did you have anything to do with Aizen's escape?" Lee asked angrily.

"What!? No!" Ryu replied.

"Good, I can tell you're not lying, but next question, are you absolutely sure Momo had nothing to do with it?" Lee asked seriously.

"Look, she might have been a big supporter of his back before things went bad, but I know she couldn't have set him free, it's just not in her to betray us all." Ryu pointed out as the two men started walking again.

"I hope you're right, but right now you better get home and stay there." Lee replied sternly.

"What are you thinking?" Ryu asked.

"I'm thinking that whoever did release Aizen is definitely associated with your squad, and to avoid anymore misunderstandings I think it best for you to stay home." Lee explained.

"Look, I appreciate your concern, but my squad will likely be upset by the recent development, and I need to put their minds at ease." Ryu replied firmly. "Still thanks for saving my butt back there." He continued with a warm grin.

"Don't sweat it, I know you'd do the same for me." Lee replied. "Anyway, I'm going to look more into what's going on, take care Ryu." He finished, and once the two Soul Reapers bid each other farewell, Ryu headed on to his barracks, but the sight he was met with instantly angered him.

"What's going on here?" Ryu wondered when he approached a large gathering of Soul Reapers just outside the squad five barracks.

"Captain! Come quick, it's horrible!" One of the Soul Reapers exclaimed, and it dawned on Ryu that each of the Soul Reapers present were members of Squad Five.

"What's going on?" Ryu asked as he was guided through the crowd to the front where he saw Captain Zaraki standing with his zanpakuto drawn.

"I said back!" Zaraki shouted.

"What's the meaning of this Captain Zaraki!?" Ryu called out.

"Ryu Aizawa, Yamamoto's orders, until things settle down, all Squad Five duties and activities are temporarily suspended, and that all Squad Five Soul Reapers return to their respective homes until further notice." Zaraki explained, and each word he spoke infuriated Ryu even more.

"Tell me you're joking! Aizen escapes and Captain Yamamoto gives the order for an entire squad to sit on their thumbs?" Ryu asked.

"Hey if you got a problem, I could hurry things up, everyone knows your squad started all of this!" Zaraki shouted.

"Hey my squad, my entire squad has nothing to do with Aizen's escape!" Ryu shouted.

"I'm not going to tell you again, take a hike kid." Zaraki ordered.

"How dare you insult Captain Aizawa!" One of the unseated Shinigami shouted.

"Stand down!" Ryu called out over the crowd behind him. "Starting a fight against Squad Eleven will not solve the issue, but rather make it worse. So do as he says, and return to your homes." He continued solemnly but angrily at the same time.

The crowd began to disperse reluctantly, but Ryu stayed behind as he kept a firm glare fixated on Zaraki. "You trying to pick a fight?" Zaraki asked.

"No, I just can't believe the rest of you are content with shutting down an entire squad while Aizen gets further away." Ryu replied before turning away.

"Hey, if it means anything, I don't think you'd have the balls to betray Soul Society." Zaraki replied, but Ryu acted like he didn't hear as he kept walking.

Meanwhile, back at the Squad Two barracks, Momo was in the middle of being interrogated. "It's as I said, back in the day the thought crossed my mind, but I'm not an idiot. I learned a hard lesson that Aizen was behind everything, and no longer support him." Momo explained irritably.

"You openly admitted that you had once thought of releasing Aizen, and your blatant grudge against your captain, and also of Lieutenant Kurosaki of Squad Six, I find it hard to believe that you no longer want to release Aizen, if anything it strengthens your desire to release him." Soifon replied irritably.

"That may be, but I really didn't have anything to do with it. I mean don't you have security or any cameras to prove I've never even been inside Muken?" Momo asked.

"We do, but unfortunately the recordings were erased." Soifon replied.

"Then it really could have been anyone." Momo protested.

"Ugh, you don't get it, it could be anyone, but your history, and your opinion of Aizen make you not only the prime suspect, but the only suspect. Unless you know something you're not telling me." Soifon replied irritably.

"Captain, I don't know who else it could be, but I swear on my honor as a Shinigami that I did not release him!" Momo shouted desperately.

"But that does not mean that you wouldn't, and unfortunately for you, there's nothing to prove otherwise." Soifon replied. "Omaeda, take her back to her cell." She finished.

Meanwhile Lee had managed to sneak past the guards investigating Muken, but when he reached the prison cell that Aizen had held for a few years, he was surprised to see that there was no one in the room investigating. "That's odd, shouldn't they investigate in here?" He wondered. "Even if they started in here first, they wouldn't already be done… Unless…" He put his train of thought on hold as he approached the very place where Aizen was restrained. "Could it be… Could it be that they're purposely not going to investigate this area?" He wondered as he narrowed his eyes. "Why would they do that? What could be in it for them?" He wondered as he looked back to the door before back to where Aizen was held. "Is it a cover up? A Squad Two Shinigami would be capable of erasing the security recordings, and they would surely be able to come and go from in here with little trouble if any." He began to put the pieces together, but he still had to be sure, and he pulled out his soul pager. "Requesting information regarding Shinigami of Squad Two, full roster, wait, show only Shinigami that transferred in from Squad Five." He sent the message, and it didn't take long before a hell butterfly entered the chamber. "Hmm, so, it's down to those three eh?" He asked as he narrowed his eyes. "Damn, if I try to give one the shake down, the real culprit would instantly find out about it and disappear if he hasn't already." He reasoned before stealthily leaving the prison altogether.

Lee decided that it was for the best that he would inform Ryu first, but before he got far he was cut off by a Shinigami with burning red hair and silver eyes. "Where are you going in such a hurry?" The Shinigami asked as he gripped the handle of his zanpakuto.

"Yoshi Aizawa… You were the former sixth seat of Squad Six were you not?" Lee asked as he narrowed his brown eyes on Yoshi.

"Well I'm a fourth seat now, but of course that's nothing compared to my bastard younger brother." Yoshi replied with a bitter smile plastered on his face. "Nevertheless what I do is needed for the sake of Soul Society." He continued.

"Releasing Sosuke Aizen is your idea of helping the Soul Society." Lee uttered as he was handed the last piece of the puzzle.

"You really think I'd be that stupid?" Yoshi asked, but the look on Lee's face told him he did. "Well whatever, there's no way you'll find anything to prove it." He continued with a cocky smirk.

"Damn, he's right, if I want to get Momo off the hook, I'm definitely going to need strong concrete evidence." Lee thought as he let out a deep sigh. "Better stay on your toes Yoshi, I've got an eye on you." He replied as he walked past Ryu's older brother.

"Hmm, Lee Shihiro, is it really you with an eye on me, or is it really the other way around?" Yoshi wondered as a cocky smirk covered his face.

After Ryu left his barracks in defeat, he decided to head back to the Squad Six barracks where he informed Ichigo on everything. "So when you went home last night did you feel the guy's reiatsu in the living world?" Ryu asked.

"No, but I wasn't exactly trying, I only found out about his escape this morning." Ichigo replied.

"Captain Aizawa, what makes you believe he is in the world of the living and not hiding here?" Byakuya asked calmly.

"I… Can't answer that, call it a gut feeling." Ryu replied angrily. "Damn him, if we can't prove Momo's innocence she's just going to get hurt by Aizen again." He continued, and as much as the young captain tried, he could no longer fight back the tears of grief that had been threatening to flow since he got arrested the afternoon the day before.

"Hey, calm down, we'll help you prove her innocence." Ichigo replied as he pulled a bar of chocolate out of his desk. "Here, I think you might be having withdrawals." He continued with a chuckle, and instantly Ryu ripped the chocolate bar from Ichigo's hands before tearing it open and jamming the entire bar in his mouth.

"Oh yeah! I feel alive again!" Ryu exclaimed.

"That is pleasant to hear. Now tell us again about your barracks being suspended." Byakuya replied caringly.

"Right, well once I was released, I went to my squad's barracks, but Captain Zaraki was refusing to let anybody in. He said it was an order given to him, but the thing is, almost all of the officers are ashamed they ever supported Aizen in the first place, there should be no doubt about that, but our squad gets the shutdown anyway." Ryu explained angrily.

"I see, if that is the case, you have no choice other than to wait until your entire squad is cleared, but that is not what concerns me. Do you have an idea who might have done it?" Byakuya asked.

"Well, I don't… It could be anyone really, but why isn't Squad Two under the microscope? They would be the most able to release Aizen!" Ryu exclaimed.

"Saying bitter things about another squad will not-" Byakuya was interrupted by Ichigo.

"Forgive me Bya-I mean Captain, but maybe Ryu has a point. I mean, think about it, Shinigami working in that prison would be completely capable of entering his cell, and they would have the ability and knowledge necessary to release him while making it look like someone else did." Ichigo explained.

"Would you be prepared to say that in front of the rest of the captains and lieutenants?" Byakuya asked with a serious expression on his face.

"I would, we're talking about our friend Ryu here, and while we can't stand each other, Lieutenant Hinamori just doesn't seem like she could do something like this." Ichigo replied.

"Very well, you can voice your opinions in the meeting this afternoon." Byakuya explained.

"Right, well in the meantime, I'm actually supposed to head straight home, so I better take off, thanks Ichigo, thank you very much Captain Kuchiki." Ryu stated with a polite bow. "I'll see you later." He finished before leaving Byakuya's office.

A few hours later, Yamamoto commenced the meeting. "The first order of business is the immediate capture of the traitor Sosuke Aizen." Yamamoto spoke out to the captains and lieutenants.

"Now?" Ichigo asked, and Byakuya gave a terse nod. "Head Captain sir?" He asked.

"Hmm, is there something important you wish to discuss Lieutenant Kurosaki?" Yamamoto asked impatiently.

"Well sir, it's just that, I found out earlier that Squad Five activities and duties were recently suspended, and I can't help but wonder why?" Ichigo asked.

"Aizen gets released, and you wonder why we assume it was Squad Five? I thought you were sharper than this Kurosaki." Soifon piped up.

"Well with all due respect, Squad Two Shinigami would be more capable than Momo Hinamori or any other member of Squad Five when it comes to releasing Aizen." Ichigo stated, and Kyoraku gave a low whistle while Soifon went red with anger.

"How dare you! Are you going to sit there and try to say my squad set that bastard free!?" Soifon shouted angrily.

"Let me teach him a lesson Captain." Omaeda spoke up.

"I smacked you around years ago and I'm even stronger now, you want a fight bring it on!" Ichigo exclaimed with a cocky smirk.

"Silence!" Yamamoto boomed out over the Shinigami present. "Captain Kurotsuchi, what are the statistical odds that it was a Squad Two Shinigami rather than one from Squad Five that released Aizen?" He asked.

"Not very high, most Shinigami have a loyalty to their captain above all other Shinigami, and it would be more likely that a Shinigami from Squad Five released Aizen." Kurotsuchi replied with a strange grin.

"But the odds that the traitor is from Squad Two do exist?" Ichigo asked as he gave Kurotsuchi a scowl.

"Well yes, but we're talking slimmer odds than one's survival in the Dongai Precipice World." Kurotsuchi replied.

"Well what about Squad Two officers that transferred from Squad Five?" Ukitake asked with a wheeze.

"That would be a bit more likely considering the Shinigami transferred within the past few decades." Kurotsuchi replied.

"But there have been Squad Five Shinigami to transfer out to all the squads in just the past five years alone." Soifon pointed out.

"Yes, but not all of those squads were mandated with the imprisonment of Sosuke Aizen." Byakuya spoke up.

"I'm not surprised Ichigo would spout nonsense, but I expected better of you Captain Kuchiki." Soifon replied angrily as she glared daggers at the noble captain.

"Enough!" Yamamoto shouted silencing everyone. "Captain Sui Feng, you will interrogate members of your squad with two other captains present, and Captain Kuchiki, you will take two other captains and investigate the other squads, Captain Kyoraku, you and Captain Kurotsuchi will continue to investigate Squad Five, and the rest of you who are not needed by your fellow captains will investigate into the location of Sosuke Aizen." He commanded, and without another word, he dismissed the captains and lieutenants.

"Sorry Byakuya, that certainly could have gone better." Ichigo uttered as he followed Byakuya out of the Squad One barracks.

"It certainly could have, but it went the most productive it could have. Had you have remained silent the focus would remain on Squad Five." Byakuya explained. "However, you keep forgetting that I am your captain now, and your relax manner of addressing me is not to be tolerated." He continued.

"Sorry…" Ichigo spat out.

"I will overlook it this time as you have done yet another service to Soul Society." Byakuya replied.

"So do you think Ryu will be excited to hear the news?" Ichigo asked.

"It would not be outside the stretch of reasoning." Byakuya replied. "Come, we need to find Captain Aizawa." He finished before disappearing with Shunpo, and with a smirk Ichigo did the same.

Meanwhile Momo was still fuming in her cell. "It never ends, no matter what I do, no matter how much I improve, I will always be looked at as Aizen's crazy lieutenant." She thought in despair. "Ugh, and to think, I have to rely on that bastard Ryu to get me out of here." She uttered as she fell back on the bed.

"I could always get you out of there." A voice filled Momo's cell, but as hard as she looked around, she couldn't see anyone.

"Who… Who's there?" Momo asked timidly, and her eyes widened in horrific surprise when a blinding flash of light emanated from just outside her cell, and when it subsided, she was horrified to find Aizen standing right in front of her cell. "A-Aizen…" She uttered in disbelief.

"Hello Momo, it's been a while hasn't it?" Aizen asked with a calm but cold grin, the same she had seen from him so many times in the past.

"W-wha-what are you doing here?" Momo asked timidly as she began to tremble.

"I've come to get my favorite lieutenant, you don't want to be stuck in there forever do you?" Aizen asked in a caring way, but Momo was not about to betray the progress she made in getting over her attachment to her former captain.

"I'd rather stay here forever than betray Soul Society." Momo replied bitterly as she turned away from Aizen completely.

"That's rather cold don't you think, and here I was planning to make you my queen when I rule over not only Soul Society, but the living world as well. Think about it, no longer would people look down on you, and more than that, they'd respect you." Aizen replied. "I will keep you safe from harm, but only if you let me." He continued.

"Hado, number thirty-one Shakkaho!" Momo shouted before firing the kido at Aizen, but her eyes widened when it passed right through him. "Kyoka Suigetsu… You're not even close are you?" She asked in disgust.

"No, and I see now that I am wasting my time… However should you feel inspired to join me after all, simply come to the living world alone and I will find you." Aizen replied before vanishing completely.

"No, I can't join him, not after everything he did to me…" Momo thought as tears came to her eyes while memories of Aizen's betrayal rose to the surface.

Chapter 2 - end, so what do y'all think, I know its been forever since I updated any of these, but I lost interest in anime in general for a while there, video games are my first love lol, anyway, for religious reasons I've kicked video games out of my life, and now have much more time and effort to put into my writing, and lucky for y'all I have writer's block where my own original stories are concerned, so possibly I'll be updating more, anyway enough about that, onto the chapter, it was originally my intentions to leave Aizen out of the spotlight until later chapters, but I thought that their history (momo's and Aizen's) the scene where he taunts her was fitting, and a nice touch if I do say so myself, anyway, R&R and hopefully I'll be uploading more in the days to come

Disclaimer 1: I do not own bleach, but if I did, Rukia would have had bankai years ago, all rights to Tite Kubo for original canon plot and character details

Disclaimer 2: I do not own, I think, any characters or their zanpakutos, but I think I may have contributed some abilities, but I can't remember, so all other credit goes to AVP5


	4. Tension

**Chapter 3: Tension**

Ryu was utterly shocked when Ichigo and Byakuya filled him in on what happened at the meeting. "So are you asking me to help you? Am I even allowed to?" Ryu asked after pulling a sucker out of his mouth before popping it back in.

"You have been cleared of suspicions, and as such I trust your judgment." Byakuya replied.

"But that doesn't really answer my question." Ryu replied nervously.

"It should satisfy Captain Yamamoto to bring you along as a means of keeping an eye on you." Byakuya replied with a hint of deceit.

"Whoa, Captain Kuchiki is bending the rules for my sake? Incredible…" Ryu thought as his eyes widened. "Alright, but where are we continuing the investigation?" He asked as the three left Ryu's house.

"We'll start with Squad One and work our way through the squads skipping two and five." Byakuya replied. "However Lieutenant Kurosaki, I must request that as you are a substitute Shinigami you only involve yourself as much as necessary. Report to Captain Kyoraku to help with the investigation of Squad Five." He continued.

"Alright, I'll see what I can do." Ichigo replied before diverting away from Byakuya and Ryu.

"Captain, if I may speak freely, I feel like there is more to your reasoning of sending Ichigo away rather than just what you told him." Ryu spoke up.

"Indeed, your insight has always been accurate, and you are correct. It may be callous to say, but Lieutenant Hinamori's detest of Lieutenant Kurosaki could be used to our advantage. When people are angry they tend to say things that weigh heavily on their minds, and Hinamori is an exemplary example." Byakuya explained.

"I see, agitate her enough, and if she did set Aizen free she'll crack before long, but is there any other way to go about it?" Ryu asked.

"There are, but time is of the essence, and this could be the quickest way of clearing her or condemning her." Byakuya replied before the two arrived at the Squad One barracks.

Meanwhile, Soifon was rapidly developing a headache as she watched angrily while Unohana and Ukitake took turns interrogating her squad. "Let's see, next would be Lieutenant Omaeda." Unohana stated after the third seat left.

"You're joking, Omaeda has always been a member of Squad Two, and never felt any sense of loyalty to Aizen." Soifon replied bitterly.

"And his cooperation should clear his name then." Ukitake spoke up in a wheeze. "Please relax Soifon, this is more of a formality than anything." He continued while Omaeda entered the room before sitting in the chair right in front of the three captains.

Meanwhile Kyoraku and Kurotsuchi were beginning to interrogate Momo when Kyoraku noticed there were scorch marks across from her cell. "Care to explain that Momo?" Kyoraku asked as he pointed at the burn marks on the wall behind him, but Momo remained silent as she pretended as though the two captains weren't even there.

"Hinamori a superior officer asked you a question." Kurotsuchi spoke up in a bored tone of voice.

"Tch, you wouldn't believe me even if I told you." Momo replied through gritted teeth.

"Well you never know until you try." Kyoraku replied with a warm smile. "Tell me Momo, what's going on with you inside that thick head of yours?" He asked a little more seriously.

"What's going on inside my head is simply wondering why you all are wasting your time on me! The fact that I'm the prime suspect should also be the fact that I'm the least likely to have released him." Momo replied as she stared at the wall of her cell.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Kyoraku asked as he rubbed his chin.

"If I may, it seems as though she's implying that she would never release Aizen because she knew everyone would suspect her from the start, is that correct Momo Hinamori?" Kurotsuchi asked with a grin.

"Wow, even as smart as you try to seem, I never imagined anyone would get that through their thick head." Momo retorted as she kept avoiding eye contact.

"Ugh, I think we're going to need help with this and perhaps a different approach." Kyoraku stated as he rubbed his eyes before another Shinigami entered the room. "Ah Ichigo, what brings you by, aren't you supposed to help Byakuya with the other investigations?" He asked.

"Well he thought I would be better put to work here." Ichigo replied, and a smirk slowly formed on his face when the realization of his job there hit him. "He believes that I could get her to spill the secret on where Aizen is." He lied as he approached the cell.

"Tch, of course you'd believe I set him free." Momo uttered under her breath.

"You hear that, I think she just said she set him free." Ichigo stated, and Momo nearly broke her neck with how fast she turned to face Ichigo.

"How dare you! I would never release Aizen, no matter the reason!" Momo shouted angrily.

"That's not a very convincing argument coming from you of all people. You were closest to him right? Surely you know more than you're letting on." Ichigo reasoned.

"What! That doesn't mean anything, and I don't know anymore than I'm telling you!" Momo shouted.

"Well I have a feeling you know about that." Kyoraku stated as he pointed at the burns on the wall yet again. "It's saturated in your reiryoku, and it looks like it was caused by a kido, so who or what were you attacking?" He asked as he narrowed his eyes on Momo.

Momo gritted her teeth, but in the end she knew that it would be worse the longer she hid the fact that Aizen had made contact with her. "Kyoka Suigetsu…" She uttered meekly in almost a whisper.

"Ah, I see we're finally getting somewhere, so what about Aizen's zanpakuto?" Kyoraku asked.

"He appeared to me using its power!" Momo barked.

"Really now, and you didn't think it prudent to inform any guards?" Kurotsuchi asked with a huge grin.

"Well you all think I'm like his servant or something, so you tell me why I hid it." Momo replied bitterly.

Out in the Seireitei, Toshiro Hitsugaya was aiding five other captains to find Aizen when Ryu and Byakuya appeared before him, and the young captain, now almost an adult, knew why. "So in the end you pick me huh?" Toshiro asked irritably.

"Well yeah, I need your help, and if you could find Lee Shihiro he's already been informed of everything." Ryu replied.

"Lee Shihiro? My sixth seat? Why involve him in the first place?" Toshiro asked.

"Well we went to the Shin'o Academy together, and I trust him to investigate things fairly." Ryu replied.

"I agree with Captain Aizawa in this case. It seems that many Shinigami among the Gotei Thirteen hold Lieutenant Hinamori's past against her." Byakuya spoke up.

"Well Captain, are we going to help them?" Rangiku asked.

"Yes, but I want you to remain here and help the others search." Toshiro replied. "Captain Kuchiki, lead the way." He continued.

Back in the Squad Two barracks, the three captains had nearly finished interrogating the seated officers. "Alright, three more seated officers, and you say that unseated officers would not have access to Muken?" Ukitake asked before going into a minor coughing fit.

"Correct, the unseated officers would be too inexperienced to handle duties in that prison." Soifon replied in a grumpy mood before a knock came at the door. "Come in." She called out, and she let out a strained sigh when Lee entered the room. "What do you want now?" She asked irritably.

"Forgive me, but if this is not a matter of great importance I must ask that you leave until we are finished." Unohana stated.

"Sorry, but I was asked by Captain Hitsugaya to sit in during what's left of the interrogations." Lee lied with a cheesy grin.

"And you expect me to believe that you aren't here to harass me?" Soifon asked with a smirk while Lee sat down in a chair next to her.

"I never harass you, and I'm hurt that that's how you refer to my affection." Lee whispered back when the next Shinigami to be interrogated entered the office. "Yoshi… I was hoping I wasn't too late." He thought as he narrowed his eyes on Yoshi.

"You wanted to see me?" Yoshi asked as he took a seat.

"Yes, Yoshi Aizawa… Huh, would you be a relation to Ryu Aizawa by chance?" Unohana asked.

"Yeah, my genius little brother. Don't get me wrong I love my little brother, but when I found out he was planning on transferring to my squad, I transferred out." Yoshi replied.

"So you admit that you were a member of Squad Five?" Unohana asked.

"Like you really need to ask, that information is available for public access." Yoshi retorted.

"Ingenious, if he doesn't appear like he's trying to hide something, and if he manages to steer the conversation in his favor, not even these captains would know better." Lee thought as he watched the captains ask Yoshi questions. "But no matter the path he directs them in, he won't be able to avoid suspicion entirely." He thought.

Over at the Squad Ten barracks, Toshiro was angered when he found out that Lee was missing. "Well Captain Aizawa, any other bright ideas?" Toshiro asked as they left the barracks.

"Well… I do have one idea, we were asked to investigate the other squads right? Well Squad Two is only being interrogated, so couldn't we technically run our own investigation in Muken?" Ryu asked as he opened a piece of candy before popping it in his mouth.

"Captain Kuchiki, you're already bending the rules as it is." Toshiro pointed out as he turned to Byakuya.

"If the seated officers are being interrogated, it would mean that no one is investigating that prison. I agree that we should do all that we can to solve this problem." Byakuya replied after a moment of thought.

"There he goes again… It's not like him…" Ryu thought. "Could Aizen's escape be worrying him this much, is Aizen a lot more dangerous than I could have thought?" He wondered as the three headed for Muken.

When the three captains arrived they wasted no time in splitting up. Ryu went to a security room where he tried to access the security recordings. Toshiro checked if there were any residual reiatsus that shouldn't belong, and Byakuya decided to check the very place where Aizen was held. "No signs of a struggle would indicate that someone released him." Byakuya thought as he glanced around the room. "It's obvious that whoever released him was suppressing their reiatsu." He thought as he glared down at the point where Aizen had been locked down.

Ryu was having less luck, not only were the recordings from the event erased, but every other recording ever made in the prison, and if Ryu didn't know any better he would have sworn they were never recording at all. "Why delete the rest of the video?" He wondered as he glared at the monitor showing nothing but static. "Hopefully the others are having better luck." He thought as he turned off the security equipment before leaving the room.

Meanwhile, Toshiro was still moving through the prison room by room as he tried to distinguish any reiatsus that shouldn't belong. "Well I'm not getting anything that I shouldn't be getting, and that includes Momo's reiatsu, so at least I think she might be free of suspicion, but I'll still need concrete evidence to prove it." He thought as he approached the room that Byakuya was investigating. "Any luck in here?" He asked as he entered the cell.

"No signs of a struggle, no signs indicating that the binding kidos failed, and no other leftover reiatsu aside from Aizen's. Whoever did this had to have an intricate knowledge of how these restraints worked. As such it could only be a member of Squad Two." Byakuya reasoned grimly as he turned to Toshiro.

"I have come to a similar conclusion, at the very least Momo was never physically here, but I can't prove that she didn't have someone in Squad Two free Aizen for her." Toshiro replied irritably just before Ryu entered the cell.

"You guys find anything?" Ryu asked nervously.

"Not much, just a theory really." Toshiro replied.

"Well I have a theory myself, you see, the security recordings have been completely cleared. It's like they were never working to begin with, and it's giving me a feeling that this was orchestrated by a member of Squad Two." Ryu replied.

"That's the same basic conclusion we came to, but unfortunately that alone won't be enough to clear Momo." Toshiro replied bitterly.

"Well we can't give up, there has to be something we're missing." Ryu reasoned as he looked around.

Back in the Seireitei Renji, Kira, Komamura, and Zaraki all met up when they had finished searching for Aizen. "I take it none of you found the bastard either?" Renji asked irritably.

"No traces of his escape, and nothing as far as a reiatsu, it's almost as if he vanished directly from his prison cell." Komamura replied.

"I didn't find anything at any of the gates." Zaraki replied grumpily.

"It was all quiet at the Senkaimon too." Kira spoke up.

"Damn, we need to find him, move out to search Rukongai." Renji decided, and the others agreed before heading out.

Meanwhile, Ichigo had succeeded in sparking a heated reaction from Momo as he kept pestering her. "Look just save yourself the embarrassment of being found out anyway and just tell us the truth." He stated as he acted like he was losing his patience.

"I already told you a million times that I had nothing to do with it!" Momo screamed.

"Great, show us proof." Ichigo replied blandly.

"I don't have any." Momo replied through gritted teeth.

"Fine have it your way, but what Captain Kyoraku and Captain Kurotsuchi weren't allowed to inform you of, is that because you've refused to cooperate, they are going to seal your powers and banish you to-" Ichigo was interrupted by an enraged Momo.

"Fine, banish me to the human world, you'll all just look like a bunch of idiots when Aizen proves my innocence himself!" Momo shouted, and a devilish smirk manifested on Ichigo's face.

"You misunderstand, your crimes are far more serious than that." Ichigo replied and the two captains gave him a confused look. "When they're done sealing your powers you won't be going to the human world, you'll be going to Hueco Mundo." He continued, and Momo could swear her heart stopped.

In the world of the living, it would be harder, but she could continue to survive, but being sent to Hueco Mundo was a completely different story. "Y-you can't… I'll never survive in there…" Momo uttered as she began to despair.

"Then admit that you helped Aizen and you'll be spared that sentence." Ichigo replied as he tried to appear as though he had completely lost his patience.

"But… But I didn't…" Momo replied meekly as tears began to flood her eyes. "I wouldn't do that, why won't you understand that?" She asked before completely breaking down into tears.

"Satisfied?" Ichigo asked as he turned to the captains. "Even faced with such a grim future she never changed her story, and now I honestly believe her." He continued, and Momo looked up in utter shock.

"Well not quite, at the very least she may not be the one to directly release him, but that does not prove her innocence in the matter." Kurotsuchi replied.

"But, at the same time this does significantly help her case out." Kyoraku replied seriously. "Ichigo, I need to speak with the other captains about this, can you continue to interrogate Lieutenant Hinamori, Mayuri you coming?" He asked, and without a word the bored captain followed him out of the room.

"Ichigo… Was all of that simply to see if I really was honest?" Momo asked timidly.

"Well yeah, Byakuya sent me here, and when I arrived I figured it was because I could get a rise out of you." Ichigo replied.

"But that would mean that you believe I'm innocent… Do you?" Momo asked nervously.

"Ugh, kid you got a lot to learn about those around you. I never had anything against you, and besides, you fought against him in the war." Ichigo replied. "So who do you think it was?" He asked as he sat down against the cell.

"I have no idea, it's got me just as confused as the rest of you." Momo replied. "Still I was surprised that two captains came directly to see me instead of me going before Soifon." She continued as she calmed down more.

"You can thank Ryu for that much." Ichigo replied.

"Ryu? What did he have to do with it?" Momo asked.

"Well he suggested that it's more likely that a member of Squad Two released him than you, and I brought it up at a meeting this afternoon." Ichigo replied. "He's really worried about you, you know." He continued.

"Ryu worried about me? Only because he doesn't like paperwork." Momo replied with a chuckle. "Still I guess I should thank him huh… And thank you too Ichigo." She continued submissively.

"Well Ryu's my friend and I wanted to help him out… Don't tell him I told you this, but he really does like you." Ichigo replied.

"He likes me? Are you serious!?" Momo exclaimed.

"He said you're the reason he wanted to transfer to Squad Five. I think he was sold when he found out you both use fire type zanpakutos." Ichigo replied. "Now I'm not telling you what to do as far as his feelings are concerned, but you could stand to be nicer to him, he might act like nothing gets to him, but when it comes to you… Well, he can't seem to calm down." He continued.

"You're kidding… And I've only treated him like a pest…" Momo thought. "Still, he could have just transferred to Squad Five, he didn't have to take the seat of captain!" She continued irritably.

"He said he wanted to impress you, and he regrets making you look weak." Ichigo replied.

"So if you're his friend, why are you telling me this?" Momo asked in a state of confusion.

"Because he's my friend. Of course he told me to keep this secret, but with the kind of relationship you two have, he seemed content to keep his feelings inside forever, and I just thought I should help him out." Ichigo replied.

"Wow… I never even thought about it, but every time he asked me to help with paperwork, he always got it finished each day even when I flat out refused… Could it merely have been a means of spending more time with me?" Momo wondered. "Hey Ichigo… Thanks." She uttered softly.

Over at the Squad Two barracks, Soifon was getting agitated by how long Yoshi's interrogation was lasting. "So, you had access to the security room where the recordings were stored, can you tell us when you were last in that room?" Ukitake asked shakily.

"I told you, the last time I reported for duty before this morning at seven a.m. was at seven a.m. Friday morning, Saturday I had the day off." Yoshi replied impatiently.

"Can anyone verify this?" Unohana replied before holding up her hand. "Pardon, but let me rephrase, can anyone outside of Squad Two verify this?" She asked politely.

"N-no." Yoshi replied. "Still isn't Momo Hinamori the prime suspect? Shouldn't you focus more on her? You're wasting your time." He continued irritably.

"If I may captains…" Lee trailed off as he stood up. "Yoshi, can you do me a favor, can you explain to me what someone would need to do in order to release the restraints on Aizen?" He asked as he narrowed his eyes on Yoshi.

"I cannot, only members of Squad Two are privileged to such information." Yoshi replied.

"But you do know the means correct?" Lee asked.

"Yes." Yoshi replied irritably.

"Now, if no Shinigami aside from those in Squad Two know how to release Aizen, would it not suffice to say you are a bigger suspect than Momo Hinamori?" Lee asked, and Yoshi flinched.

"I… I guess it would." Yoshi replied.

"Just a little further, and he'll be as good as exposed…" Lee thought. "Alright, one more question… Soifon, could the average seated officer of Squad Two make it past the other officers without being detected?" He asked as he turned to the Squad Two Captain.

"Y-yes… Yoshi, things are not looking good for you, so if you did not release Aizen now would be the time to prove it." Soifon replied before as she glared at Yoshi.

"Well I guess there's no use denying it any further… Bakudo number eighty-one! Danku!" Yoshi shouted before anyone could react.

"What do you think you're doing!" Soifon shouted.

"I'm doing a service to the real Soul King, Sosuke Aizen!" Yoshi shouted as he let his reiatsu flood forth out of his body. "Seeping crest of turbidity. Arrogant vessel of lunacy! Boil forth and deny! Grow numb and flicker! Disrupt sleep! Crawling queen of iron! Eternally self-destructing doll of mud! Unite! Repulse! Fill with soil and know your own powerlessness! Hado number ninety! Kurohistugi!" He called out to the stunned Shinigami in front of him.

Instantly the Squad Two barracks was significantly damaged with the hado that Yoshi had used, but while the off-guard captains suffered serious injuries, Lee had expected the attack, and used the same bakudo as Yoshi, and escaped nearly unscathed. "Yoshi, I see you've been learning some new tricks." Lee uttered as he looked around at the destruction.

"What can I say, Aizen is a great teacher." Yoshi replied as he drew his zanpakuto while Lee drew his. "Kozui! Leviathan!" He exclaimed and his zanpakuto began to drip water as it grew to seven feet in length and a foot in width.

"Don't think I'll be letting you escape!" Lee exclaimed. "Raijin no shinseina konpanion wa, arashi no anata no ikari o umidasu! Raiju!" He called out, and with a flash of light his zanpakuto took the form of a steel mallet with images of a fox on the hammer head. "What do you think, lightning versus water, how do you really see things turning out?" He asked as he held his hammer toward Yoshi.

"I'll take my chances." Yoshi replied, and when he swung his zanpakuto a wave of water flooded forth toward Lee.

"You're joking right!?" Lee shouted. "Shogeki aggai!" He called out as he brought his hammer down, and when he made contact with the ground, a lightning bolt struck the hammer, and the force it came down with split the wave. "Shogeki aggai!" He exclaimed as he rushed Yoshi while he pulled his Leviathan back for another attack, and when he swung around, he managed to force Lee back before taking his chance to escape. "Damn it! Get back here!" He called out as he began to chase Yoshi down.

Down in Muken, the three captains were discussing possible theories and how to proceed with the investigation when they felt the disturbance from Squad Two. "That certainly doesn't feel like Momo's reiatsu." Toshiro pointed out before noticing that Ryu had gone pale. "Captain Aizawa, what's wrong?" He asked as the young captain collapsed to his knees.

"It's Yoshi… It's my brother… Of course it is though, he was part of Squad Five in the days of Aizen, and he transferred to Squad Two… I can't believe it, but at the same time I can." Ryu continued as he fell on his hands. "My brother is the traitor." He uttered as tears flooded his eyes.

"Captain Aizawa get a hold of yourself, you are a captain of the Gotei Thirteen and your officers will be looking to you for strength. You can not allow yourself to despair." Byakuya stated as he pulled Ryu up by his left arm. "Now we need to head him off!" He continued sternly as he led the other captains out of the prison cell.

As desperately as Lee tried, he just couldn't manage to catch up to Yoshi. "Damn, I think it's safe to say he's heading for the Senkaimon, and wouldn't you know, no one who can stop him is anywhere close!" Lee thought in frustration.

"Just give it up, you know you can't follow me immediately into the world of the living!" Yoshi shouted back as the Senkaimon came into view.

"If I can't catch you, then I'll cripple you!" Lee shouted. "Bakudo number sixty-one!" he called out, but before he could finish the kido, he was hit by a wave of water. "Ugh, damn, at this rate he's going to keep me from binding him." He thought before swinging his hammer around, and the wave of water dispersed. "Bakudo number sixty-one! Rikujokoro!" He narrowly managed when he came to a stop, but to his horror, he may have had barely enough time to cast the kido, but Yoshi managed to avoid getting caught before opening the Senkaimon and fleeing to the living world. "Damn it!" He shouted as he through his hammer to the ground causing it to fire a lightning bolt off that nearly struck Ryu when he arrived. "Ryu… I'm sorry." He uttered at the sight of the pained look on his friend's face.

"He's gone isn't he, my brother." Ryu uttered solemnly, and all Lee could do to respond was look down in shame.

Chapter 3 - end, so what do y'all think, I know I might have been all over the place in this chapter, but the main characters were kinda all over the place themselves, anyway, yeah, some might roll their eyes when reading the part where Yoshi uses kido to overpower three captains, but Aizen taught him the kido, and he caught them off guard. Also, the translation for Raiju's release command is as follows: Sacred companion of Raijin, bring forth thy fury of storms! Raiju! The command for the Leviathan is Kozui which is flood. As for the attack of Lee's Shogeki aggai, it roughly translates to Shock Crush

(Shunpo back to work for the first time in forever!)

Disclaimer 1: I do not own Bleach, because Tite Kubo owns it, all rights on original canon characters and elements to him

Disclaimer 2: I do not own the Characters Ryu or Lee, or their zanpakutos, credit goes to AVP5


	5. How To Proceed

**Chapter 4: How To Proceed**

Things were bad in the Seireitei, Aizen was already long gone, and a deceptively powerful Shinigami managed to bring three captains down before fleeing. Worse yet was that the Shinigami traitor was Ryu's brother Yoshi Aizawa. As much as he wanted to deny the reality, he knew he could not show his brother any compassion from then on. If they were to reunite now, they could only be enemies.

Still even as much as he hated how things were turning out, he had a duty to the Gotei Thirteen, and he had no choice but to attend the meeting to discuss how to proceed. "Captain Soifon, Captain Unohana, and Captain Ukitake have all been gravely injured by Yoshi Aizawa, and it is believed that he also released Aizen. If I may Captain Yamamoto, we need to hunt them down!" Kyoraku exclaimed.

"Are you insane, we need to keep what Shinigami we have left here, it's obvious that they'll return to attack, and I think it best if we wait them out." Kira spoke up.

"You want to wait for Aizen to grow in strength be my guest, but I think we should act now before it's too late!" Renji exclaimed.

"Do all of the squads need to be here, chasing two punks down isn't exactly exciting." Zaraki spoke up.

"I figured you would be exited about a challenge." Kurotsuchi replied. "Are you sure your not experiencing a feeling of intimidation?" He asked with a wide grin.

"Are you calling me a chicken you freak?" Zaraki asked.

"You two are forgetting that we have a serious threat on our hands, Sosuke Aizen is not to be taken lightly." Byakuya spoke up.

"And without the Hogyoku what strength could he possibly hope to muster? Most of the Espada have been long dead. I think we should wait." Toshiro stated.

"No, they have something planned I know it… Aizen… I never once met him, but I always got the vibe that he was incredibly intelligent, and I guess if he could persuade Yoshi to betray us than it's even worse than I thought… The longer we wait, I think the more difficult it will be to stop whatever they're planning." Ryu replied somberly.

"That just shows how much of a kid you still are." Komamura replied.

"You are mistaken Captain Komamura, and the decision Captain Aizawa came to should be proof enough of that." Byakuya spoke up.

"Captain Kuchiki, I wasn't aware you were beginning to pick and choose favorites." Komamura replied.

"Ryu Aizawa's history in my squad does not now influence my decision. I was merely referencing his decision to face the problem that his brother caused." Byakuya replied.

"Then humor us, what would be the best way of hunting them down?" Toshiro asked irritably.

"Well we could start by not dragging our feet." Kyoraku replied angrily. "Lieutenant Kotetsu, how are the captain's recoveries coming along?" He asked.

"Well Captain Unohana should be regaining consciousness soon, and Captain Soifon should recover too soon after, but Captain Ukitake is in a bad way." Isane replied nervously.

"At the very least we should wait until the other captains have recovered." Kira spoke up.

"And what if Aizen and Yoshi attack before then? You all speak as though the Hogyoku doesn't exist, but is that even confirmed?" Ryu asked angrily.

"Aizen once absorbed it directly into his body, and as such it no longer exists." Kurotsuchi replied.

"But is Aizen only what he once was, or is he still stronger from the Hogyoku?" Ryu asked.

"Your arguments only serve the idea that we should remain here until they move." Komamura replied irritably.

"No, that's not it, we need to hunt him down, whether it be because he is still affected by the Hogyoku, or if he has some new scheme in the works, Aizen has been the greatest threat to us, so we need to act quickly!" Ryu exclaimed.

"Hmm, could your desperation though be attributed to your own feelings regarding the Shinigami that aided Aizen?" Komamura asked.

"How dare you! My loyalty is always first to the Gotei Thirteen, and I am highly offended that you would insinuate otherwise!" Ryu shouted.

"Then stop acting like such a kid!" Komamura shouted back.

"Why don't you stop acting like a scared cat!" Ryu shouted.

"What did you call me!" Komamura asked as he gripped the handle of his zanpakuto.

"You wanna fight, bring it, you know what I got trumps bankai!" Ryu shouted as he reached for the handle of his zanpakuto.

"Ugh, you both need to stop acting like children, and you need to remember who the real enemy is!" Renji exclaimed as he held Komamura back while Hisagi held Ryu back.

"Get off Hisagi, before you get hurt." Ryu warned lowly as the temperature in the room dropped a few degrees.

"Captain Aizawa, if you activate your bankai here, I will personally stop your actions!" Toshiro shouted as he gripped his zanpakuto.

"Tch, fine." Ryu uttered as the temperature returned to normal. "But what then about my lieutenant? How much longer do you intend to keep Momo locked up?" He asked before turning to Yamamoto who seemed bored with the aggression the captains were displaying to each other.

"Lieutenant Hinamori's circumstances are still unclear as of yet. It is true that Yoshi Aizawa had to be the one to release Aizen, but we can't say for sure yet whether or not she didn't have him do it." Kira replied.

"Oh come on! There is no evidence now to suggest that!" Ryu shouted.

"And what do you call her infatuation with Aizen?" Kira asked.

"If you took one second to try and understand her instead of making biased accusations, you'd realize that she hates Aizen almost as much as she hates herself for looking up to him the way she did!" Ryu shouted back. "She's innocent in all of this and it's unjustified to keep her locked up!" He continued angrily.

Arguments continued to heat up between the captains before a knock sounded at the door seconds before Hanataro entered the meeting. "Sorry for the disturbance, but I thought you all should know, Captain Unohana has made a full recovery and she's already going to work on Captain Soifon and Captain Ukitake." He explained.

"Understood, dismissed." Yamamoto replied.

"Captain Yamamoto, it's your decision, should we release Lieutenant Hinamori, or should we continue to detain her until we know more?" Kira asked angrily.

"Hmm, Captain Kuchiki, Captain Komamura, you will go with Captain Aizawa, and you will interrogate Lieutenant Hinamori once more, if no concrete evidence surfaces in that time, you are to release her to perform her normal duties as Lieutenant of Squad Five." Yamamoto replied with a strained sigh.

"Hmm, even Yamamoto himself is a little off today… Just how dangerous is Aizen really?" Ryu wondered before following Byakuya and Komamura out of the room.

"When we arrive, you are to remain silent Ryu Aizawa." Komamura stated after a moment of silence.

"What." Ryu asked flatly with a sideways glare at the Squad Seven captain.

"I do not find it unrealistic to believe you can communicate with your lieutenant in other ways than speech, and I do not want you signaling to her how to answer our questions." Komamura replied.

"Dog boy, if you have a problem you better lose it real fast because you're starting to seriously get under my skin." Ryu replied nastily.

"The feeling is mutual kid." Komamura replied smugly.

"Captain Komamura, Captain Aizawa, you are letting your frustrations get in the way, do not forget that Aizen and Yoshi Aizawa are the true threats." Byakuya replied.

When the three captains arrived at Momo's cell, Komamura insisted that Ryu not even be involved with the last bit of interrogations, but what hurt Ryu more was when Byakuya agreed. "Damn, I can understand Komamura's hatred of Momo, but Captain Kuchiki is more concerned with the truth than his own interpretation of things." Ryu thought irritably.

Inside, Byakuya's demeanor changed completely as he took charge in the interrogation. "Momo Hinamori, you made a serious error in your scheme to release Aizen." He began catching Komamura off guard. "And worse yet is that now your captain has been stripped of his title, and is as we speak now, having his powers sealed while his zanpakuto is destroyed. However, you are fortunate, Ryu is trying to take all blame onto himself, and I believe it's so you can remain here to cause more problems in his stead while Aizen grows in strength." He continued while Momo's eyes widened further and further.

"What!? Ryu was part of all that?" Momo asked in utter shock.

"Oh don't try and act all surprised, we found the letter he wrote to you confirming his part in the release of Aizen. Now come clean and you might avoid the same fate." Komamura replied angrily.

"But I already told you a hundred times that I don't know anything about that! Certainly I don't know what you're talking about in this letter." Momo replied angrily.

"Well we know better, and we know it's just a matter of time before he breaks and exposes you." Byakuya replied. "If he has to tell us it won't be good for you." He continued coldly.

"Look I don't know what you're talking about, and seriously Ryu? The guy is about as good as they come, a bit disgustingly so, really." Momo replied.

"Well the evidence we gathered suggests otherwise, correspondence between you and the two Aizawa brothers discussing a means of releasing Aizen, and furthermore, the obstruction of the Gotei Thirteen as we try to abate the situation." Byakuya replied as he drew Senbonzakura. "Finally, we have been given the order to execute you in your cell if you refuse to cooperate." He finished coldly as a terrified Momo locked her eyes on the blade.

"But I've been completely honest this whole time, I really don't know anything!" Momo shouted as her eyes flooded with tears. "Please, why won't you believe me!?" She shouted.

"You are a traitor to all of Soul Society, and you have the audacity to still claim innocence!? Are you really that determined to fool us into believing you aren't involved!?" Byakuya shouted.

"B-but I'm not trying to fool anyone, really, you honestly have the wrong Shinigami, but… That doesn't matter to you does it? I think I see what this is, it doesn't matter if I'm involved with the problem or not, this is all a way to get rid of me isn't it?" Momo asked hollowly.

Byakuya gave Komamura a stern look before opening the cell a moment later. "Captain Kuchiki, are you certain?" Komamura asked while Momo glanced between the two captains in utter confusion.

"What is this?" Momo asked timidly.

"I can say with certainty that there was no room for deception in her eyes. I believe Momo Hinamori has been honest with us all along." Byakuya replied.

"What?" Momo asked in shock.

"I have judged you to be innocent." Byakuya replied. "Now let us go, we need to return to Yamamoto's office, and your captain is eagerly awaiting your release." He continued as he led Momo from the cell.

"Captain Kuchiki, I fail to understand." Momo replied when they stepped outside.

"All you need to understand is that your captain had faith in you that no one else had." Byakuya replied as he nodded at Ryu.

"Momo!" Ryu exclaimed as he ran over to his lieutenant before the two wrapped their arms around each other a few seconds before Momo pushed Ryu off of her.

"Was all of that in there your plan?" Momo asked angrily.

"What?" Ryu asked in utter shock.

"Captain Aizawa was not made aware of my plan. I believed his faith in your innocence would hinder my goal of forcing the truth out of you, but you only continued to stick to your story when Captain Kuchiki threatened you with execution. I won't say I don't suspect your opinion of Aizen, but I do believe you to at least be honest about your not being involved." Komamura explained.

"What? What the hell did you two do in there!?" Ryu shouted.

"We proved Momo's innocence, that should be enough for you." Byakuya explained. "Now we'll give you a moment to yourselves if you need it, but remember that a decision must be made, and you need to return to Yamamoto's office before long." He continued before he and Komamura left.

"Momo, are you alright?" Ryu asked as he kept staring at where Byakuya was a moment earlier.

"I am now… Ryu, did you really have faith in my innocence, even after everything I did to you?" Momo asked as they started walking toward Squad One.

"After everything you did to me?" Ryu asked.

"Well how I always treat you, don't you hate me?" Momo asked.

"You're joking right? Out of all the Shinigami, I think I hate you the least." Ryu replied with a grin.

"But I always look down on you as an immature kid." Momo replied.

"Hmm, yeah well, I'm not always the most mature Shinigami, and despite my height I'm actually younger than Captain Hitsugaya, so what you would say wasn't ever really far from the truth believe it or not." Ryu replied bashfully before pulling a piece of candy out of one of his pockets. "Here, I find candy helps calm me down in times like these." He continued with a warm grin.

"Heh, you'll always be a kid won't you." Momo uttered with a light chuckle before popping the candy in her mouth.

"Well until the day I have to grow up!" Ryu exclaimed with a laugh. "Come on, the others are waiting for us!" He exclaimed as he ran on ahead.

"Huh, he always treats me the same way no matter how hard I am on him… Maybe Ichigo was right, maybe Ryu really does like me." Momo thought as she ran after her captain.

When Ryu and Momo arrived at the meeting, Ryu was relieved to see that the captains that were missing earlier were now present with minor injuries. "So have you all come to a decision yet?" Ryu asked as he glared at everyone who accused Momo of being involved with Aizen's release.

"We are getting close, but we have to ask you Ryu, what was your reaction when you found out your brother released Aizen?" Soifon asked.

"My reaction? Huh, to be honest I'm trying hard not to think about it, but if I must… My duty is to the Gotei Thirteen. Yoshi may be my brother, and it saddens me to think of him so lowly, but I will redeem his mistakes by preventing him from making more. Captain Yamamoto, I can not defeat Aizen, but if you allow me to face my brother, I will make him pay for his crimes!" Ryu exclaimed, but he was put off by the reactions on everyone's faces. "What, what is it?" He asked.

"Ryu Aizawa, you Captain Kuchiki, Captain Kyoraku, and Captain Hitsugaya will lead a mission to the world of the living. From there you will hunt Aizen down, and those of you capable of sanban kaihou, will engage Aizen." Yamamoto ordered.

"Captain… Even with sanban kaihou, would any of us really be strong enough to face Aizen if he still has the strength granted to him by the Hogyoku?" Ryu asked. "I mean even with Ichigo's final Getsuga Tenshou, can we really defeat him?" He asked as his eyes widened.

"We can not know for sure, but we must try, for the sake of all souls living and dead!" Yamamoto replied.

"So, your orders for the rest of us?" Soifon asked.

"The rest of you will remain here to wait until the others report in with more information, then if necessary the rest of you will go to aide them." Yamamoto replied.

"Understood!" The captains and lieutenants replied in unison.

A few hours later the captains assigned to the mission arrived in the world of the living with their lieutenants and a few other seated officers. "So this is the world of the living huh, it's a lot different than I remember from the academy." Ryu stated as he looked around at the trees surrounding them.

"That's because you were taken to a place with a high density of living souls. Here you will find less living humans, but less hollows, we'll setup a base of operations here." Byakuya explained.

"A base of operations, alright." Ryu replied as he dug through their equipment for supplies to pitch a few tents.

"Would you like some help?" Ichigo asked as he, Nanao, Toshiro, and Momo dug in as well.

"Oh, thanks." Ryu replied as they went to work, and in a short fifteen minutes the camp had taken shape.

"So where do we begin to search for Aizen?" Kyoraku asked as the group settled around a few campfires.

"Well he might be trying to forge an Oken again, so maybe Karakura." Ichigo replied.

"Ichigo, perhaps it would do a service to our allies here in the world of the living to inform them of Aizen's release." Byakuya suggested.

"Yeah, good idea." Ichigo replied as he stood up, but when he turned to leave he stopped when he nearly ran into a large human-shaped hollow.

"Well hello there." The hollow grunted before flashing Ichigo a toothy grin.

"What!?" Ichigo grunted.

"Hollows!" Nanao exclaimed, and when Ryu jumped up he was horrified by the sheer number of hollows bearing down on them.

"There's gotta be at least a hundred of them… We captains can hold our own against them, but what about the subordinates?" Ryu wondered as both groups cautiously sized the other up, and a mere fraction of a second later, all hell broke loose when the fighting began.

Things got hectic fast as the battle began to rage, and it didn't take long for everyone to spread out, and worse yet was that before long Ryu had lost track of everyone else as all of the reiatsus he was feeling merged into an indistinguishable mess. "This is weird, there are too many of them for this to be just a random group of menos grandes." Ryu thought as he engaged one of several Vasto Lordes hollows. "I just hope the others can stay strong through all of this." He uttered before focusing his reiryoku. "Rise from the ashes, Akai Fenikkusu!" He exclaimed, and once more his zanpakuto exploded with intense flames that took on the form of a phoenix. "Moetsukiru!" He shouted before swinging his zanpakuto around unleashing several fireballs that destroyed a few weaker Gillians while the stronger Adjuchas and Vasto Lordes hollows took the attacks off the chest.

Meanwhile Byakuya and Ichigo were separated from the group as well, but they managed to stick together. "Ichigo behind you!" Byakuya called out when an Adjuchas appeared behind Ichigo.

"Getsuga Tenshou!" Ichigo exclaimed as he brought Zangetsu around before unleashing a blue wave of reiryoku. "This is absurd!" He continued as he blocked an arrancar's zanpakuto.

"Ichigo, invoke your bankai!" Byakuya exclaimed.

"Bankai!" Ichigo called out a second later.

"Bankai!" Byakuya did the same as he dropped Senbonzakura to the ground.

Meanwhile Ryu was still holding his ground with just his shikai as the number of hollows painstakingly fell, but when Ryu cut down his eighth Vasto Lordes, he was horrified when he noticed for the first time that hollows were continuing to show up as the fighting continued. "Damn, is there no end to them?" He wondered as he grimaced at the situation. "Looks like I'll have to resort to at least my sanban kaihou, or maybe even my bankai." He thought as he tightened his grip on the zanpakuto.

"No, not yet Ryu, but in time." A voice filled Ryu's mind before he shook his head.

"But Akai Fenikkusu, is shikai enough to get through this?" Ryu wondered as he stared down at the zanpakuto.

"Perhaps not, but you should be." Akai Fenikkusu replied telepathically.

"Fine, I'll do it your way then, hado number fifty-four, Haien!" Ryu exclaimed intensely before firing the kido at the nearest hollow catching a few others in the resulting blast. "Well it might take forever, but at least these hollows aren't too bad even for Vasto Lordes class." He thought as he took down another hollow.

As Ryu kept fighting, he was not oblivious to his brother's arrival on the battlefield, and he was able to block the surprise attack. "Tch, you've always been able to see through me, then again you never saw this coming, did you?" Yoshi asked as he motioned around to the hollows.

"Yoshi… Why are you doing this, how much has Aizen offered you to betray the Gotei Thirteen? Answer me brother!" Ryu shouted as he locked his gaze on his older brother while the hollows stood by watching.

"Humph, not that you'd understand, but did it ever occur to you that I have my own reasons for releasing him?" Yoshi asked smugly as he glared back at his brother. "Do you honestly think I need something from him?" He asked as a smirk permeated his lips.

"Something's off about him, he's not as cocky as he would normally be." Ryu thought as he narrowed his eyes. "Tell me Yoshi, what reason then did you have for releasing Aizen?" He asked as he tightened his grip on Akai Fenikkusu.

"As I just asked, why should I tell you anything?" Yoshi asked as his smirk changed to a scowl.

"There he goes again, what is going on?" Ryu wondered. "It's his reiatsu, and he sounds and acts like him, but something is definitely off about him." He thought, but before he could give it anymore thought, his brother began to release his Leviathan.

"Flood! Leviathan!" Yoshi shouted before his zanpakuto grew in size. "Are you ready to die little brother? I know all about your bankai and the serious drawbacks of using it, and I know how much you prefer not to use it, but if you want to beat me, invoke bankai now." He continued as he pointed his massive sword at his brother.

"Bankai huh? So you think you know all there is to know about me is that it? Well you'll find soon enough that there are more ways than one to win a fight." Ryu replied smugly before holding his right hand toward Yoshi. "Hado number thirty-one, Shakkaho!" He shouted before firing the kido, and as he expected Yoshi was quick to dodge, and Ryu had guessed the direction right, and he was waiting with a follow-up attack. "Moetsukiru!" He called out before peppering Yoshi with fireballs. "Give up now! You know you can't beat me!" He shouted as he pointed his zanpakuto down at his brother.

"What'll you do if I don't, incinerate me?" Yoshi asked as he shook off the mild burns.

"I'll do a lot more than that if you don't." Ryu replied, but a mere second later his heart dropped while his eyes widened as they fell on Momo.

"Oh do go on." Momo replied.

"What the hell?" Ryu uttered as he added distance between him and his lieutenant. "Why is she here, and where did…" He trailed off when the realization hit him.

"Shatter." Momo uttered with a smug smile, and a second later it was as if to Ryu everything in the world obeyed Momo's order, but then it all became clear to him as his eyes landed on the traitor captain Sosuke Aizen.

Chapter 4 end- So what did y'all think, personally this is one of my favorite chapters I've ever written, and its giving me a lot of great ideas to present to AVP5, anyway, I'd like to decompress further on the chapter breakdown, but I'm just too excited to get back to work on it.

(Shunpos to finish the fight! K-chaw!)

Disclaimer 1: I do not own Bleach, but if I did sanban kaihou would be real, well sort of

Disclaimer 2: Ryu, his zanpakuto, and the basic storyline belong to my partner AVP5. All rights on the character and his abilities aside from the basics, belongs to them


	6. Despair

**Chapter 5: Despair  
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Ryu couldn't stop himself from gaping at Aizen. "So, you face me directly, even with Ichigo here, I must say I'm flattered." Ryu uttered sarcastically. "Damn, I really should've asked Captain Kuchiki for more info on him." He thought as he looked around at the hollows present as they held their ground. "So, the hollows still follow Aizen… Not good." He thought as he gritted his teeth.

"Ryu Aizawa, you'll find that you don't need to act around me, feel free to say what's on your mind." Aizen replied with a calm cold grin.

"Fine, you're a worthless bastard, and I'm not scared of you." Ryu replied smugly.

"Ha-ha, is that all that's on your mind? And here your brother told me you were some kind of genius." Aizen replied in a tone of disappointment.

"What's his game? Criticize me to death?" Ryu wondered. "Enough talk, Moetsukiru!" He shouted before launching a fireball at Aizen. "Got him!" He exclaimed when the fireball struck Aizen directly.

"Got who?" Ryu's eyes widened as he turned to the left to find Aizen completely unscathed. "You don't honestly believe you hit me do you?" Ryu narrowed his eyes as he turned around to find another Aizen smiling at him.

"After images of Shunpo? No… He appeared as my brother, and again as Momo… It's gotta be some kind of illusion." Ryu realized as he narrowed his eyes on Aizen.

"Let me guess, like so many before you, you're trying to think your way through the effects of my Kyoka Suigetsu…" Aizen paused as he held up his zanpakuto. "But you can't… Kyoka Suigetsu places the target or targets under complete hypnosis, and even upon realizing it…" He trailed off before multiple copies of himself appeared. "You can't break it's stranglehold on you." He finished before each copy rushed Ryu.

"D-damn, which one is the real one?" Ryu wondered frantically as he tried his hardest to get away from the army of Aizens. As he kept trying to flee from Aizen, he began to realize that there would be no escape, that if he hoped to get free of Aizen, it would take nothing short of his death. "Damn, there's gotta be something I can do… Somehow I have to be able to tell the real Aizen from all of the copies… Unless he isn't even here, could his power be a lasting one that remains in effect until it's released, and even with his absence, could it be possible that it would remain in effect?" He wondered as he glared around at the Aizens each grinning in the same calm and cold way.

"Ryu, tell me, why was it you chose Squad Five?" Aizen asked casually.

"Why would I tell you that?" Ryu asked angrily.

"Now now, no need to be completely rude, I was merely making conversation." Aizen replied.

"Why make conversation at all? Aren't you supposed to be trying to kill me, because in case you learned wrong, that's kinda the point of a battle." Ryu replied smugly.

"Oh Ryu, I don't want to kill you, I want to accept you." Aizen replied and Ryu's eyes widened.

"Accept me?" Ryu asked as he glared at Aizen.

"Yes, you see you are experiencing the effects of just my shikai, but my bankai would be much worse… I will break you Ryu Aizawa, and before the end you will be begging me to kill your allies in the hopes I'll ease the hypnosis." Aizen replied casually.

"Heh, anyone ever tell you that it's very foolish to reveal your plan to the enemy?" Ryu asked, but a second later, while he was in the process of merely blinking, when he opened his eyes the Aizens were replaced by Momos and other higher ranking members of the squad. "What the!?" He exclaimed as he jumped back while the Shinigami in front of him drew their zanpakutos. "Crud, the seated officers aside from Momo don't have bankai, so they won't be much of a problem, but Momo has bankai, and with how hard she's been training it'll be infinitely tougher than the battle we had for captaincy." He thought as he kept his eyes darting around at the many different copies of each Shinigami.

"Bankai!" The Momos all called out in unison while the other seated officers invoked their shikais. "Asahi Tobiume!" They all called out.

"Well this is going to be really difficult." Ryu uttered as he gritted his teeth. "I guess I have no choice…" He thought as he tightened his grip on his zanpakuto. "If this is complete hypnosis, then these aren't real, and I shouldn't worry about killing them, but… What if one of the copies is the real thing and is also under the hypnosis?" He wondered.

"Taiyoko Imochi!" The Momos all called out before a hellish fury of massive fireballs engulfed the surrounding area in a raging forest fire.

"Ugh, normally the thought of fighting with so much heat around would be a blessing, but I can't fight like that if the real versions of them are among them." Ryu thought after escaping the explosions.

"Fight them Ryu Aizawa, fight and become what you are meant to be!" Aizen's voice echoed in Ryu's mind.

"Oh, you'd just love that wouldn't you!" Ryu exclaimed angrily.

Meanwhile, Momo and the others had taken their fights in a different direction, and were now a few miles away from where Ryu was struggling against Aizen, but while the others didn't seem to notice the changes in Ryu's reiatsu, she couldn't shake the feeling that he was in serious danger. "Shiro! I'm getting a bad feeling about Ryu, are you good to handle things here?" She asked after dropping yet another hollow.

"Captain Aizawa? Hmm, now that she mentions it, we've been getting dragged further and further away from our camp while Ryu's been steadily moving in the other direction. Could it be that this was Aizen's plan from the beginning? But why would he choose to isolate Ryu, aside from having that third release, there isn't much of anything special about his abilities, unless Aizen knows about his bankai when even the rest of us captains don't know." Toshiro thought as he narrowed his eyes. "Momo, we need to hurry. Rangiku, aide the others while we're gone!" He called out.

While Momo and Toshiro were heading toward Ryu's location, Momo only felt it for a second, but having felt Aizen's reiatsu stopped her in her tracks. "You feel that Shiro?" She asked nervously.

"Yeah, for a fraction of a second, but that was definitely Aizen, we need to suppress our reiatsu and slow our approach." Toshiro replied.

"Hey, do you think he got to Ryu the way he got to the rest of us a few years ago?" Momo asked nervously as they ran through the forest.

"I think it's a likely possibility. Aizen's Kyoka Suigetsu is inescapable, and I don't doubt he'd resort to using it, especially on a genius Shinigami." Toshiro replied worriedly.

"Well how do we proceed when we get there, do we engage Aizen, or do we stand back and assess the situation?" Momo asked nervously.

"Well when we arrive, do you feel confident that you can not only defeat Aizen with one attack, but before he can activate his shikai against you?" Toshiro asked.

"I don't care if he does try, I will kill him for everything he put all of us through." Momo replied angrily.

"Momo as much as I'd like to agree with you, we don't know if he's only using his Shinigami powers or if he's still empowered by the Hogyoku. We'll only get one shot, so we'll have to make it carefully." Toshiro replied.

Meanwhile, Yoshi was standing next to Aizen as he watched on in amusement as Ryu seemingly fought invisible opponents. "So I find myself wondering, can you see what he sees while you make him see it, or are you seeing exactly what I'm seeing?" Yoshi asked with a smirk.

"I don't need to see anything, it is merely enough that I know." Aizen replied with a smile.

"Creepy, I hope I never end up on the hypnotized end of his zanpakuto." Yoshi thought as he turned back to his brother.

"On a side note though, you expressed your optimism in Ryu joining us, but he doesn't show any indication that he's going to crack at all." Aizen continued as his smile faded to a scowl.

"Just give it time Lord Aizen, everyone has a breaking point, it's just that his is higher than most." Yoshi replied. "Hmm? It seems we have company." He uttered as he glanced over to Aizen.

"Is that so?" Aizen asked.

"Yeah, I figured the others might end up figuring us out and coming to help Ryu, so I took the liberty of placing several puddles of water all over the forest. I've been monitoring their approach, and I can say with certainty that they will be here soon. Captain Toshiro Hitsugaya, and Lieutenant Momo Hinamori." Yoshi replied blandly.

"Momo you say, and Hitsugaya as well? Will they ever learn?" Aizen replied as he put on his cold calm smile once more.

Only a few dozen yards away Momo and Toshiro slowed to a walk as they attempted to sneak up on Aizen and Yoshi. "Hey Shiro, he's hypnotized, look!" Momo whispered as she pointed at Ryu fighting nothing. "Strange, why are the hollows just standing around? They almost seem like statues." She uttered under her breath.

"Moetsukiru!" Ryu shouted before taking out another clone of his fourth seat. "And another one down, and the copies are still standing. Man I hope I'm right about this." He thought as he dodged several attacks before getting clear enough to counterattack.

"If he is affected by Aizen, then that means he's probably close by." Toshiro stated angrily. "We need to be careful." He continued as he stealthily moved through several bushes and shrubs. "Where is he?" He wondered as he looked around.

"Shiro above you!" Momo called out, and when Toshiro looked up into the branches overhead he was horrified to see Aizen grinning down at him.

"Damn it!" Toshiro exclaimed as he raced to draw his zanpakuto, but it was too late, Aizen had successfully snuck up on them, and worse yet, he already had Kyoka Suigetsu drawn.

"Shatter!" Aizen exclaimed, and in addition to Ryu, Toshiro and Momo both were now caught in the perfect hypnosis. "Too simple." He continued as he dropped down in front of a frozen Toshiro. "Captain Hitsugaya, oh how the mighty have fallen… And Momo Hinamori… It really has been too long." He continued as he looked over at a frozen Momo as well. "Hmm, what to do… Yoshi, what do you think?" He asked as Yoshi approached them.

"I think we should kill these two now so that they aren't a threat in the future." Yoshi replied smugly as he looked Toshiro dead in the eye. "May I have the pleasure my lord?" He asked with a wicked grin.

"No, I have a more entertaining idea… You've managed to spark my curiosity when you told me everything you knew about your brother, and I honestly am interested in his abilities, but with the fact that Byakuya Kuchiki can also use a similar power leads me to believe it can be learned by anyone, so this is what we're going to do…" Aizen explained before Toshiro and Momo turned toward Ryu before rushing the captain. "We'll make them all see us, and no matter how sure they are otherwise, it will only be a matter of minutes before they're fighting each other to the death." He explained as his smile grew.

"So to each one, the other two look like us… Is there anything you can't make them see?" Yoshi asked.

"It's more than just sight, every sense is affected. Whatever I decide is whatever they will hear, and touch, and smell, and taste. As long as they're under my hypnosis, they will never be in control of their senses." Aizen explained.

"My god… Just what the hell did I release?" Yoshi wondered as he effectively masked his reaction. "It's an impressive gift sir." He uttered as casually as he could manage.

Ryu was struggling, right after Aizen and Yoshi reappeared, Aizen made the other copies disappear, but now the young captain was fighting his brother and his predecessor. "Tch, I see them right in front of me, but it's like… I don't know why, but it almost feels like it's not… Them…" He thought as he came to a horrifying realization. "Stop!" He called out as he jumped back to add more distance.

Momo and Toshiro came to a brief stop. "Why are you pausing Aizen, you and Yoshi having problems?" Toshiro asked as he glared between Ryu and Momo.

"It's obvious enough to me Aizen, that Yoshi has had enough." Momo replied.

"I'm not giving up!" Ryu shouted angrily. "It's just… This is false." He uttered.

"Of course it's false!" Momo and Toshiro exclaimed angrily.

"Tch, both of them are acting strange… Perhaps they're not really Aizen and Yoshi, but rather someone else, and maybe putting three people under the illusion is harder than just one, especially when the three are captain class." Ryu thought hopeful he was right.

"Well Aizen, I don't see what point you have in telling me that I'm under an illusion, but I will be killing you here today." Toshiro replied.

"Aizen, this isn't going to work, they're onto the illusion, and they're not going to fight each other now." Yoshi stated as he turned to Aizen.

"No… Perhaps you're right… Fine then, we're leaving. We have much to do anyway before then." Aizen replied as he turned to walk away.

"Wait sir… I was thinking, you could make them see anything correct? What if you made Toshiro follow a copy of you somewhere else, and have Momo believe Ryu is you, and then we sit back and watch as either Ryu is killed by the woman he loves or is forced to kill her instead?" Yoshi asked.

"Yoshi Aizawa, I need a strong soldier, not a broken one." Aizen replied irritably.

"I understand that, but let's say Momo wins, you could choose to appear as Ryu to her or I could, and if Ryu wins, we find some unsuspecting woman and force her to play the part." Yoshi explained.

"Why not recruit Toshiro Hitsugaya with such a scheme?" Aizen asked.

"Well I don't know much about Toshiro's bankai, but Ryu bragged about his to me once, and trust me, it's a weapon worth having." Yoshi replied.

"Tell me about his bankai and maybe I'll be more inclined to consider your plan." Aizen replied.

"Alright, take Momo Hinamori for instance, her Tobiume is a fire type zanpakuto, and in bankai remains a fire type zanpakuto. Toshiro's Hyorinmaru is an ice type zanpakuto that remains as such in bankai… But here with Ryu is where things get interesting. In shikai his Akai Fenikkusu is a fire type zanpakuto same as Momo's, but what sets him apart is the bankai, in which it becomes a light type." Yoshi explained.

"Is that so?" Aizen asked, he believed his Kyoka Suigetsu could render a target completely hypnotized, but it was a light zanpakuto, and unsure of its abilities, he was unsure if Ryu could be indefinitely controlled. "Interesting, Shatter." He continued, and as planned Toshiro jerked his head around before running off while Ryu and Momo stayed behind. "Yoshi, eliminate Toshiro Hitsugaya with extreme prejudice." He finished, and with a nod Yoshi turned to leave, but something out of the corner of his eye made him stop before looking up just in time to dodge a few attacks from Lee Shihiro.

"L-Lee!?" Yoshi exclaimed as he stared down at the Shinigami holding a large hammer.

"Yoshi… Time for some payback!" Lee shouted loudly as he brought his hammer up.

"Tch, Aizen, we have company!" Yoshi exclaimed, but when he looked back he was horrified to find that Aizen was absent, and might have been for the entire battle. "A-Aizen?" He uttered before Lee pinned him up against a tree.

"Those two, how do I stop their battle?" Lee asked furiously as he motioned over at Ryu and Momo.

"Ha, you can't, it's the beauty and danger of Aizen's Kyoka Suigetsu, complete hypnosis, and only Aizen can control it." Yoshi replied with a sinister grin. "Those two can only fight to the death from here on out, but hey, if you think you can break them out, by all means be my guest, just be careful not to get cut." He continued while Lee pulled Leviathan away from its partner.

"Alright, but first, Courage of Thunder, Bridge of a Spinning Wheel. With Light, Divide This Into Six! Bakudo number sixty-one, Rikujokoro!" Lee exclaimed before six beams of light slammed into Yoshi's midsection. "Now then, I hope this works." He thought before drawing strange black symbols on his arms. "Black and White Net. Twenty-two Bridges, Sixty-six Crowns and Belts. Footprints, Distant Thunder, Sharp Peak, Engulfing Land, Hidden in the Night, Sea of Clouds, Blue Line. Form a Circle and Fly Though the Heavens. Bakudo number seventy-seven! Tenteikura!" He exclaimed as a light blue box of reiryoku appeared in front of him while he waved his arms around in deliberate and carefully thought out patterns before forcing his hands toward the rectangle.

Ryu and Momo kept fighting each other under the belief that they were fighting Aizen alone, but even then they both came to a sudden stop when Lee's voice filled their minds. "Ryu, Momo, can you hear me?" Lee asked desperately.

"L-Lee? Is that really you?" Ryu asked nervously.

"Yes, and you both need to listen to me, the Shinigami you're fighting right now is not Aizen but each other. You need to stop the fight now!" Lee called out.

"Are you insane, how can you be sure this isn't the real Aizen?" Momo asked angrily.

"Because I'm staring at both of you right now, and you two look ready to tear each other apart." Lee replied.

"How do I know you're not part of some illusion Aizen is creating simply to fool me into submitting?" Momo asked angrily.

"See Lee, it's no use, tell them all you want that they're hypnotized, but in the end it just comes down to them trusting their senses more than anything." Yoshi explained smugly.

"Surely you know how to break the hypnosis." Lee replied bitterly as he turned his head toward Yoshi.

"Nope, only Aizen himself can let them go." Yoshi replied with a snort.

"Tch, damn, okay Lee think, there has to be something, some kido that can break them free…" Lee thought before his eyes shot open. "Of course! Thank you Soifon, I'll have to remember to give you a big kiss later!" He thought with a grin. "Okay Lee, you remember learning about the ryoka invasion led by Ichigo Kurosaki right?" He asked.

"Yeah, your point?" Ryu asked as he continued to glare at Aizen.

"Do you remember the reports we were shown about Soifon's and Yoruichi's battle?" Lee asked.

"Yeah, and again your point?" Ryu asked as he began to lose patience.

"Hanki, I can't remember which one used it, but it can cancel out any ability with a perfectly opposite rush of reiatsu. Do you think you could manage it?" Lee asked desperately as he began to pant for breath.

"I could try…" Ryu replied as he went to work. "Argh, it's no good, I can't make it perfectly opposite of Aizen's." He replied in frustration.

"D-damn… Alright, but can you believe that the Aizen you're seeing right now is actually Momo?" Lee asked.

"Y-yeah, I guess…" Ryu uttered nervously.

"And Momo, can you hold off on attacking for a few more minutes?" Lee asked.

"I'll try, but I can't make any promises." Momo replied.

"Alright, give me a sec to figure some things out." Lee replied before pouring more energy into his kido. "Attention all Shinigami in the world of the living, come to my location, I need help with Captain Aizawa and Lieutenant Hinamori, and most importantly Yoshi Aizawa." He continued.

"Byakuya!" Ichigo exclaimed, and ignoring the lack of respect Byakuya nodded before the two raced toward Lee's location.

Before long several more Shinigami were gathered around. "So the situation is complicated but simple, they both are made to believe the other is Aizen." Lee explained as he released his kido.

"Damn, even after training so hard, and with a decent knowledge of Aizen's power, I still get caught up in it." Toshiro grumbled as he sat down next to a tree.

"Uh Lee, a lot of hollows just showed up, but they're not attacking, do I hold off on attacking them as well?" Ryu called out nervously.

"So how can we break them from the hypnosis?" Lee asked nervously.

"Well… If I know Aizen as well as I think I do… We can't, only Aizen can." Kyoraku replied.

"Damn it, there has to be something we can do!" Lee exclaimed.

"Sure there is, we place them under arrest and take them back to the Seireitei and have Unohana look after them." Ichigo replied.

"They're going to go insane with fear though. They believe everything they see to be real." Toshiro replied dismally.

"Are we real?" Rangiku asked as she rubbed her arms.

"Well at any rate pack those two up, we're going home… It's obvious we were ill prepared to deal with Aizen this time. Come on, let's go back." Kyoraku replied, and after incapacitating the two highest ranking officers of Squad Five, the group of Shinigami returned to Soul Society in possession of a bitter defeat.

Chapter 5- end - So what do y'all think, to be honest this chapter is a rewrite of the same chapter as I thought of two different ways to work on it, and well this one won, lol, anyway yeah Ryu and Momo both believe the other is Aizen, talk about bad luck, anyway read and review, and I'll hopefully post another update soon

(Shunpos to figure out a reasonable means of breaking Aizen's hypnosis)

Disclaimer 1: I do not own bleach, but if I did I would have done an arc where Tsukishima and Aizen team up, all rights to tite kubo

Disclaimer 2: I do not own Ryu, Lee, or their zanpakutos, credit to AVP5


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